Topsy Turvy
by Vixen Argentum
Summary: ON INDEFINITE HIATUS, WILL MOST LIKELY BE DROPPED. SORRY BUT THAT'S THE WAY IT IS. Inutaisho has just betrothed his two sons. Neither are too thrilled about the arrangement. SessxInu InuxSess and now officially RyuuKxInuT
1. Father Knows Best

_Quick Note- I was challenged on another name from a now non existent account that I had earlier in the year to write a story in which Sesshomaru has pups. I racked my brain for a scenario that I thought would even work for such a thing. This is what I came up with. I promise it will not be the typical uke!Sesshomaru story._

_Synopsis- Sesshomaru is set to be mated to Inuyasha, by their father Inutaisho. Neither is too happy about it._

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha or make a profit by this. In fact if I could make a profit off of whoring out Sesshomaru, I would quit the university in a heartbeat._

_READ AND REVIEW! I ACTUALLY DO PAY ATTENTION TO MY REVIEWERS!_

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"No! I won't do it!" Sesshomaru's eyes flashed red, the dog within him yearning to shake free of its dormancy.

Sensing the upwelling of power, Inutaisho placed a hand gingerly on his son's shoulder. "Son, I had hoped that you would respect my decision."

The great dog lord did not breakthe amber eyed stare he held with his son. Dominance deferred, Sesshomaru looked away, the comment stinging much more than a hand on his creamy skin ever would. His father was a great and powerful demon, and as the son of that honored one, he would respect the dog lord's wishes.

"Gomen, father. I did not mean to disrespect you." Sesshomaru declined his head slightly in respect.

Inutaisho ruffled the younger demon's hair. Sesshomaru tightened noticibly at the touch, but did not dare move from his father's grasp. "Thank you. Will you honor my chosen mate for you?"

"Yes, father."

"Good boy. I will announce it to the lands tonight"

The dog lords bowed to one another, the ruling Inu turning to go out into the courtyards. Sesshomaru felt exhausted. It was as if everything that had put that proud buoyancy in his step had been ruptured. He knew that his father wanted for him to show more compassion towards his underlings, but this was ridiculous.

Inuyasha. Even the sound of his name made the poison want to un-dam itself from his claws. That dirty hanyou half brother that really should never have been born. Inuyasha. Sesshomaru had no qualms about mating another male, or even a brother. That was done practically all the time. Hell, just look at the wolf clan! Now, thanks to his father,tonight he had to look forward to the announcement of his betrothal. He would rather gut himself upon the tenseiga, which would be a painful eternity without death. As far as he was concerned, it was much better than living with Inuyasha tangled in his bed linens.

xXx

The nobles of the kingdom sat around the long tables that lay heaped with the spoils of hunts in the western lands. Sesshomaru watched the peers of the land gnaw on bones, growl over choice scraps, and get tipsy on just a little too much sake. Sesshomaru would never be so barbaric. In fact, when he ruled the castle, he would have a strict code of behaviors set for his guests. Anyone who broke them could be tossed out on their noble asses for all he cared. Order. This was something that appealed greatly to the young Daiyoukai.

Inutaisho gave his son a little wink before clapping his hands together, effectively silencing the masses.

"Ladies and Lords! I am now pleased to announce what you all came here to learn. I would like to present to you my son and heir to my lands, Lord Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru could feel their eyes upon him. He tried to ignore the hunger that possessed most of the sake crazed minds out in the audience. One brave soul managed a wolf whistle, but he was silenced by a sharp jab to the ribs by his lady. Sesshomaru was the pinnacle of desire. He was an unmated youkai. A youkai of a high rank and unparalleled beauty. He was being displayed to the masses, to those who would never be able to lay a finger on his fine ivory skin. It was a rather cruel tradition, Sesshomaru supposed. All wheeling and dealing for a mating betrothal took place behind closed doors when one was this high up in the ranks.

Sesshomaru's golden eyes showed nothing but contempt and hatred for the faces that gawked at him. Done with his moment of exposure, he continued his walk from the stone archway to Inutaisho's side. He wanted to be anywhere but here.

"After much consideration, I have decided what would be best for my lands, and for my son."

Sesshomaru balked. Like hell this was the best for him. _You will pay for this father._

"Lord Sesshomaru, my son, heir to my lands and legacy, has agreed to be mated to Inuyasha, my youngest child. Inuyasha, please come out and join us in our celebration of your betrothal to Lord Sesshomaru."

The crowd looked slightly puzzled. Why was the hanyou dog demon looking just as dour as Inutaisho's older son? They began to clap, first starting as a trickle, then roaring against the stone of the hall. Regardless of what was going on between the two brothers, they made a very attractive couple. In fact, if the hanyou had painted Sesshomaru's demon markings upon his face and pinned back his ears, they could easily be mistaken for twins.

For whatever reason, it had never occurred to Sesshomaru that he would have to see Inuyasha at the announcement of his betrothal. Like a little puppet, Sesshomaru offered his hand out to his brother, who was only a few feet away. The crowd "aww"ed at the supposed display of affection. The brothers knew better. The golden eyes were locked in duel, only partially hidden by fake smiles.

Sesshomaru clasped Inuyasha's hand in his own, bringing it gently to his lips, where he gave it a chaste kiss. More murmurs sounded from the peanut gallery. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at his brother. Who said that he was supposed to be the lady?

Inutaisho cleared his throat before beginning again. "My two sons are to be mated together on the night of thefull moon, which is fast approaching in a week. Now let us all celebrate this coming together of peers, the forgiveness of differences, and the commitment to peace."

Massive cheers erupted. The Lord of the West held up his glass. "To Sesshomaru and Inuyasha!"

"To Sesshomaru and Inuyasha!" Chorused the horde of people. Sesshomaru was disgusted at how his father was now encouraging the fools to drink one more glass of alcohol, even after they were more than sufficiently sloshed. However, that did not even compare to how disgusted he felt about the hand that was now clasped neatly in his.

The party now spiraled into a wild bacchanalia of dancing youkai and flowing wines. Both Inuyasha and Sesshomaru attempted to leave the festivities, but their father was extremely vigilantwith the pair. _How ironic_, Sesshomaru thought, _that my brother and I are on the same side for once._ Lords and Ladies that Sesshomaru did not know nor care to remember formed giant queues to pay their respects to the betrothed couple. It wasn't until the sun was beginning to rise for the following morning that all of the castle partiers finally decided to return to their own homes. Both sons of the great lord were relieved when the last drunkard staggered out of the castle doors.

"Sons, I just wanted to say how proud I was of you, setting aside your differences for tonight."

Sesshomaru groaned.

"As it is the beginning of the Inuyoukai mating season, you shall be paired on the day of thefull moon. On that date you will mark one another, and declare the division of power between you."

Inuyasha looked puzzled. "Division of power?"

Inutaisho smiled and placed a loving hand on his son's shoulder. "Oh, yes. I'm afraid I forgot to mention that when I declared my intentions to you earlier. There is more to being mated than just being paired together. Because you are males, it must be decided between you who is the seme and who is the uke."

Two very different stares greeted the dog lord. Inuyasha's was almost a purple shade of embarrassment, while Sesshomaru's stripes were beginning to expand with rage.

"Of course I'm the seme, father." Sesshomaru snarled. "There is no other way for this relationship to function. That is final."

Inutaisho chuckled. "I am afraid that is not for you to decide, son. Maybe you are, and maybe you aren't the seme. There is nothing wrong with being an uke."

Inuyasha looked eager at the revelation. "How exactly is this decided?" Sesshomaru's gaze could have chucked a million enchanted arrows at his brother that instant.

"Well, first one- well actually Sesshomaru because of age, will mark and mount you, Inuyasha. After he is finished, then you will retire into separate rooms. The next night, Sesshomaru, you will be marked and taken by Inuyasha. Within three days, one of you will sustain the conception of a pup. Most times, this first pup is never brought into the world,because of the considerable stress put on the uke, but the scent of the pregnancy will be unmistakable."

"No. I refuse to be submitted to that despicable hanyou." Sesshomaru crossed his arms over his chest. This was ridiculous.

"Actually you will." Inutaisho pet the back of his son's hair, chuckling as the hackles rose even further. "You will submit to tradition, even if I have to tie you to the bed myself."


	2. Preparations

_Quick Note- Oh, my god! I am completely blown away with the interest this fic has gotten. Thank you sooooo much to the people that have reviewed me or placed me on their lists. I worship you all!_

_Synopsis- Everybody is getting ready…_

_Beta- The incredible, illustrious Lyiint, you have saved my ass. Thank you so much, love! Anytime that I can be of help to you, I am at your feet/_

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Hell, I am so spent right now that I can't even figure out a funny thing to say in my disclaimer. beams_

Sesshomaru peered out of the gaping windows in his bedroom every night. From his private observatory, the moon grew from the seedling crescent to a waxing gibbous in the blink of his nearly immortal eyes. Just like all Inu youkai, he lived and worked by this calendar of lunar light, ebbing and flowing just like the tides along the seashore that it pulled with pearly fingers. The date of his mating drew near, both strangely exciting and galling him simultaneously. Soon the moon would be full and high in the night sky, and he and his mate-to-be would be baying together at their canine goddess. However, not to be misleading, Sesshomaru would see to it that he would be the one howling with pleasure while Inuyasha worshipped her by yowling in anguish.

As it neared the first night of mating season, Sesshomaru felt the truly wild part of himself becoming more inclined to stop and sniff the air. That day, the forest, even though the season wouldn't begin until a few mere hours later, dripped with the scent of unfulfilled lust. He could even smell the light cloak of pheromones that he himself was beginning to produce. Predatory to his very core, these lecherous instincts were only slightly tempered by the iron of his will. Claiming Inuyasha on this night would be quite a pleasure, although he would resent every rose tainted thrust of his hips for the rest of his life. How sad it was that for one moment of white flowers, he would be paying with the rest of his seemingly endless existence.

The young dog lord entered the ritual baths, allowing for the castle servants to cleanse his long silver hair. Generally he refused to contract the help of his lowly underlings, but tonight he did not feel the need to hide himself. The liquid steel of being a youkai in heat emboldened him. Regardless of whatever bullshit his father had flung at him the night of their betrothal announcement, this was his night to finally show his brother who the top dog was for good.

A young tiger youkai now was laying delicate foils of silver upon his claws. Sesshomaru had to smile inwardly at the apprehension the youth showed in his wavering hands as they fumbled for the tiny strips. Feeling particularly evil, Sesshomaru made eye contact with the adolescent youkai. The tiger demon nearly sliced through the pad of his own finger with the razored edge of the silver leaf. Sesshomaru's blatant advance had really frightened the boy, who was unsure about this unfed need that gnawed at his heartstrings. _I was right._ _This is his first heat. _The beast in him studied the young male's slight form. _In a few more years, he will be quite a prize for the bed of one fortunate youkai._ Claws done, he left the tiger demon in peace to ponder his own attractions.

Sesshomaru glided into the next room where his father waited for him, holding the ceremonial kimono in his slender but strong hands. Sesshomaru had already wrapped his underclothing in the style of the samurai, a puzzle for the hands of Inuyasha. It had plenty of twists and turns for his brother to behold and caress, as well as providing a few split seconds of decency in the time spent with his father.

Inutaisho set the nearly sheer cloth upon his son's body, admiring the cascades of silk that broke and surged from each prominent feature of his figure. Tying the obi that was embroidered with rampant heraldic Inuyoukai, he pushed Sesshomaru to the mirror that hung on the near wall.

"Sesshomaru, there will never be a night where you will look more glorious than this."

Sesshomaru didn't even bother to acknowledge that his father had spoken to him. The divine figure in the mirror was impossible to ignore even for a split second. This was his night. The absence of acknowledgement led Inutaisho to dig his claws into the silken shoulders. Sesshomaru finally broke the concentration on his reflection to glare at his father.

"However, even though you are decreed as the dominant one on this night, you will not endanger Inuyasha in any way. Take him, mark him, and mate him. If you even think of harming him irreparably, you would not even want to know what its consequences entail."

"Powerful as I may be, I do not need to maim hanyous to convince myself of superiority over them. Don't worry about your precious little pup," Sesshomaru growled.

"Fair enough," replied Inutaisho. "This will be the most glorious night of your life. Make the best of it, son."

Sesshomaru closed his eyes and nodded before bowing to his father. Inutaisho walked towards the doorway, beckoning to him with an upturned finger. At last, the sun had set in the sky and the full moon shined her countenance upon father and son. Mating season had truly begun.

xXx

Further down the hallway, Inuyasha was eyeing that same celestial body with questioning eyes from the futon that he knelt upon. The knuckles in his fists grew white with the pressure of his weight against the mattress as he leaned forward. This night for him held mixed reviews.

Inuyasha and Sesshomaru had never been close as brothers, but Inuyasha had always secretly admired the raw power that sparked in his kin. Before now, Sesshomaru had only used Inuyasha as a sparring partner, whether it was a fight with iron or tongues. When their swords crossed, the jarring pain of Sesshomaru's attacks were just the right amount of attention. To be the object of that calculating battle hardened stare was thrilling beyond belief. Maybe Sesshomaru felt the same exhilaration. Actually, Inuyasha knew that he did.

There was one time, perhaps a century ago, when Inuyasha had seen a fleeting opening in his brother's fighting stance. Jabbing forward towards the swath of unprotected flesh, he managed to draw blood from a point right above his left collar bone.

"Nice attack for a half breed," Sesshomaru commented, much to Inuyasha's shock.

In the split second that he had paused to realize that his icy brother had paid him a compliment, Sesshomaru had knocked Inuyasha flat on his back. With the tip of his sword, Sesshomaru split the skin open where his jawbones fused to his neck.

"Just like I thought," Sesshomaru snarled. Inuyasha winced, bracing for the worst, sword tip still pressed to his neck. "You are just as weak as the mortal's likeness that runs through your dirty blood."

Sesshomaru cleaned Inuyasha's blood from the tip of the scabbard, wiping the crimson liquid on the hanyou's cheek in a clotting smear. How delicate his brother must be to operate his sword in such a manner and not even graze his skin. Sheathing his blade in the blue and amber obi knotted about his waist, Sesshomaru left Inuyasha lying there in the field, still stunned from the encounter of forced surrender. Yet, Sesshomaru had shown no malice, he had just simply put his weapon away and left. For once in his life, Inuyasha had nothing to say back to the figure that left him behind.

Inuyasha knew exactly what to expect from his nocturnal rite. He would get no more and no less of the backwards love that had always echoed from Sesshomaru. Tonight he would offer himself up for sacrifice, just as he had done for centuries previous, only this time, he was not offering a stab at his life or body. Inuyasha now stared at the ripples in the pond below his window that were warping the perfect mirror of the moon on the surface of the water. The picture reminded him of the distortions of his own confidence. In a few precious minutes his brother would calmly walk through the doors to the mating chamber and wage war to conquer the only frontier that did not completely belong to the elder dog, Inuyasha's heart.

Inutaisho had come to visit his younger son, to help prepare him for the ritual of pairing. Inuyasha didn't think that his father really understood the relationship between his two sons. If Sesshomaru had an undeniable vendetta with his half-brother, Inuyasha would surely be dead by now. This night was not the night that troubled him. Inuyasha had submitted to Sesshomaru several times before, though rarely quietly. It was the next night that Inuyasha feared like nothing before.

His father had taken him under his arm, just as he had when the hanyou was just a puppy, scarcely a few decades old. "I will not let him harm you. Submit to his needs tonight without question, for you are promised to him."

"I know, father," Inuyasha answered. "I am not as dense as you and my brother might think I am."

Inutaisho burst into laughter and clapped his son comically on the back. "Phew! What a relief!" Inuyasha felt relieved as he sensed the topic passed. He was sorely mistaken.

"Then what is it that _is_ bothering you?"

Inuyasha's stomach pulled a wingover in his abdomen. The great dog lord smiled warmly at him, ready to pull the insecurities right out of his son's head.

Inuyasha gulped. "I know full well what I must do tonight, but what the hell am I supposed to do tomorrow? He might _actually_ try to kill me that time."

Inutaisho traced the underside of his chin with a thoughtful claw. A sly smile flickered across his face, his eyes lost in fiendish thought. The young hanyou wondered what could possibly be making his father smile so much. He started to count the grains of wood on a floorboard beneath his shoes. Everything had a number, whether it was the stars in the sky or the days of ones life. _Only within the knowledge of numbers can the secrets of life be known_, Inuyasha thought to himself.

"Just don't worry about it. I am your father. I will protect you. I promise."

Inuyasha stopped staring near his feet and glanced bewilderedly at his father. "And just how do you plan to do that!"

"I have my ideas. I have a gift for you to use tomorrow. When you are prepared as the top, I will present you with it."

Inuyasha sieved through his mind, trying to figure out any possible solution that his father had determined. Nothing came to him, so he quickly shoved it from his mind. He doubted that Sesshomaru would have any mercy upon him if Inuyasha's mind were not focused on physical attention of his new mate.

"I am afraid that I must leave you here. I have some words to share with Sesshomaru before the sun sets. I wish you nothing but happiness and pleasure. Both the ability to control and yield hold ecstasy in their own peculiar ways." With that the Lord of the West had left his younger son alone with only his tortured psyche.

An hour later, Inuyasha heard two pairs of feet echoing in the hallway leading to his room. The pizzicato of footsteps soon dimmed to the light and airy beat of what he guessed was a single walker. Inuyasha struggled to remove the sheet he had wrapped around his shoulders, flinging it to the side of the futon. He first shuffled to hide his nudity and then to expose himself once more. Panic seized him. How should he be posed? Was he supposed to answer the door? And off course, the most frightening question of all disturbed his spirit to the core. Would he be pleasing to Sesshomaru? Was he attractive enough, voracious enough, or strong enough to be worthy of his mate?

Silence seeped through the night air as whatever figure stood outside the door, pausing for what seemed to Inuyasha like infinity. The hanyou's bare and slightly oiled chest heaved in a delightful percolation of adrenaline, fear, and lust. With two ill mannered slow squeaks, the heavy oak door swung gently open. Now the only thing that separated the two brothers was empty space and a butterfly's gossamer wing thick of cloth. Sesshomaru…


	3. Please Me

_Quick Note- This is the lemon chapter. So…because of the explicit material involved, I left the lime untouched and removed the explicit parts of the lemon. However, as lemons are lots of fun (hehehe) you may see the unedited versions with appropriate ratings (X and NC-17 respectively) on my mediaminer account under the name Russanya or my adult fanfiction account under the name of VixenArgentum. Enjoy yourself!_

_Synopsis- Sesshomaru on top- hell yeah!_

_Beta- The amazing Demitria Miriam, without whom I would be shit. Seriously, sometimes you should see my unbeta-ed stuff sometimes._

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha, but if I did, Inutaisho wouldn't have to tie his son down at all. Cuz I would have already done it by now. For me, lol.

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_

Inuyasha could not help but simply stare at Sesshomaru. His hair had been braided into a thick sterling rope, leaving the rest of his body open in unobstructed view. The pale skin of his chest peaked out from between the wraps of fabric, echoing the pallor of the moon above. The door clicked sharply shut after it had rebounded against the stone walls.

"Sesshomaru." The syllables escaped his lips unbidden.

The full youkai raised his right hand parallel with the ground, extending his first two fingers in his quiet challenge. "I see that my little brother has finally accepted his place in the world."

Inuyasha bowed down in front of Sesshomaru, shifting his chin to the left, effectively baring the vulnerable flesh on the side of his neck. Sesshomaru smiled. Inuyasha shuddered at the odd twisting of Sesshomaru's features into this unnatural expression. It showcased the powerful fangs that were destined to sink into him as he was penetrated in a second claiming.

Grasping the hanyou's face in his clawed hand, Sesshomaru studied his brother's bone structure close up. This was the very first time he had actually seen his otouto in such close proximity. And what he saw was astounding. The lineage of the great Inuyoukai clan was the only thing he saw knit into his features. Gone was the mortal in the hanyou, the scent of his heat calling out to Sesshomaru. Perhaps this would be a wise match after all.

"You're actually not half bad, for a half-breed, that is," Sesshomaru crooned. His nose was a scant millimeter from the hanyou's face. Inuyasha blushed, spreading up from the site where his brother held his jaw captive.

"I try my best to please you." The smirk on Inuyasha's face goaded his brother forward.

Sesshomaru leaned in to kiss Inuyasha, his mouth seeking ownership over the flesh of his younger brother's lips. Hungrily, Inuyasha passively opened the gateway to his mouth, inviting Sesshomaru into his depths. Sesshomaru needed no coaxing; he conquered his new dominion by the lash of his velvet tongue. Twin striped hands found their way to Inuyasha's ears, fondling them with newfound curiosity, finally trailing through his hair to rest upon the hanyou's bare skin.

Volcanic throes of infatuation left seeds of passion every single place where their bodies met. Sesshomaru continued to explore the plain of his chest and shoulders eagerly with his lips. He then flipped him over to lap the salt up from the damp curves of his back. Sesshomaru stood up, leaving the breathless Inuyasha on the floor, the spray of his hair hiding his face from view.

"This is my night, brother."

"I know, stupid."

"Then _please_ me, you unworthy mongrel."

Sesshomaru's arms were crossed over his bare chest as he stood over Inuyasha condescendingly. The hanyou then crawled over to his overlord, hands seeking to free his mate of his cruel undergarments. To Inuyasha's surprise, the cloth was expertly folded, twisted, and knotted in a frustrating maze. Sesshomaru could feel himself growing harder with every frustrated tug, the enigmatic layers being pulled back one at a time. Who would have thought that Inuyasha would have been so eager to free his brother from the compounds of 10 feet of silk?

Finally, the labyrinth of fabric was discarded, a white banner on the floor between Sesshomaru's legs. Holding his body weight against the crimson slashed hip bones, Inuyasha leaned in to take Sesshomaru's length into his mouth. Taking care to avoid his teeth, he swirled his tongue against the moistened tip, continuing down each side of the shaft with a thrust of his head. Sesshomaru moaned as he scraped the incomprehensibly soft cushion of Inuyasha's throat.

Kami-sama, where did his mate learn these skills of lust?

From his superior position, Sesshomaru watched keenly as the hanyou continued to serve him. In mid thrust, Sesshomaru dug his claws into the skin of Inuyasha's shoulders. He felt desire radiate from a point deep in his chest as Inuyasha's eyes connected with his own, mouth still full of his physical better. Sesshomaru couldn't stand it any longer.

He threw Inuyasha face first against the floor, pinning him down with one hand. Inuyasha panted furiously, but did not move against the dog lord. Instead, he pushed a small jar of something that tingled slightly to the touch toward the older male. Accepting the vial, Sesshomaru flushed with pride. Inuyasha had blatantly and openly yielded to his rival, his brother, his mate.

LEMON CONTENT EDITED- see me as VixenArgentum at aff or Russanya at mm

Sesshomaru began to work faster. "If you say what I want to hear, you just might get what you want."

Inuyasha whined softly, earning his ears a shallow scratch from his lover's teeth. A single drop of blood cried free from the wound. The flip of a light pink tongue intercepted its journey.

_Hmmm, half blood doesn't taste too bad._

Sesshomaru began hissing questions into his ear. "When I am standing, what is your place?"

"On my knees!"

Inuyasha was rewarded with a line of sloppy kisses down his cheek. "When I am kneeling, what is your place?"

"Underneath you!"

Sesshomaru angled his hips a little more. "What was that?"

"Underneath you?"

"It's not a question!" he growled.

"UNDERNEATH YOU!"

Sesshomaru seemed to be satisfied with that. He untangled his hands from Inuyasha, using one to brace himself and the other to grip his hanyou mate. Inuyasha shivered with pleasure as Sesshomaru began to lick the triangle of skin that peaked out from between his shoulder muscles and his collar bone. Then, in one fluid motion, he sank his fangs deep into the sensitive tissue, then ratcheting upward, teeth still locked. Inuyasha howled in pain. The melancholy notes once again brought a smile to Sesshomaru's face. He lapped up the blood from the trenches, sending Inuyasha into a bizarre euphoria of agony and bliss.

LEMON CONTENT EDITED- see me as VixenArgentum at aff or Russanya at mm

Fully exhausted, Sesshomaru flopped on the ground next to his mate. To Inuyasha's surprise, he pulled him closer so that Inuyasha's forehead rested against his chest. The youkai's heartbeat was still rapid, but he could hear it gradually slow down. Inuyasha nuzzled into his brother's chest, provoking his mate to play with his ears.

The rubbing of his sensitive ears was so madly intoxicating! This caused Inuyasha to wonder why Sesshomaru had shown this sudden gesture of kindness. Perhaps, after the work is done, a man spent will always be a man spent.

After lying there for what felt like both seconds and centuries, Sesshomaru finally picked himself up from the futon plastered with their mixture of genetic filth. Wrapping his discarded kimono around him, he bent down to kiss his mate on the cheek and then lick again at the blood that wouldn't stop flowing from his wounds.

"Did you have fun, pup?" Sesshomaru asked as he bent over Inuyasha's body. He ran a single claw from the cleft between his collarbones all the way down to his navel.

"Gods, yes."

"Then we do this again tomorrow."

Wait a minute! Tomorrow was supposed to be Inuyasha's night!

"Hey, Sesshomaru! I thought we were supposed to—"

"Later."

Sesshomaru bowed to the bewildered and naked hanyou sprawled across the floor. Closing his eyes, he turned to face the door. With a single motion, he left the room, brushing the door aside like a mere suggestion.


	4. Like Fathers, Like Sons

_Quick Note- Thanks again all of you guys for the reviews, especially to the ones that reviewed on more than one website. Another lemon is coming very very soon. Just for you all. Oh, and in this chapter, I am putting my real notes at the end, so that there are no spoilers. BE SURE TO READ IT._

_Synopsis- All about Inutaisho…and of course the morning after_

_Beta- The truly incomparable Demitria Miriam. I heart you, but you probably already know that._

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha, but in my most recent creation of fan art, lets just say I found the real uses of the Tenseiga and Tetsusaiga. The brothers were nice enough to let me watch. Yummy._

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Inutaisho pressed his ear to the wall, closing his eyes as if it would aid his cause. He could just barely hear the growl of Sesshomaru's voice through the partition of stone. Summoning up just a little more of his youki, he concentrated as hard as he could on his son's words.

"_Did you have fun, pup?" _Sesshomaru's voice purred with what the inu lord registered as affection.

Now he was getting somewhere.

"_Gods yes." _

Inutaisho chuckled at the breathlessness behind those words. He had heard every little gasp that left Inuyasha's lips, as Sesshomaru probed every inch of his core, but nobody else needed to know that.

"_Then we do this again tomorrow."_ The great lord stiffened. _What did 'this' entail exactly, Sesshomaru? You wouldn't dare disobey me._

"_Hey, Sesshomaru! I thought we were supposed to—"_

Inutaisho should have known that his eldest would need coercive action, but he had to hope that the bond of marking would convince him otherwise.

"_Later." _

Stupid pigheaded ass of a son!

The door to the chamber flung open with a dull thud. Quickly, Inutaisho threw himself against the wall, not daring to let a breath escape his lips. He thought for sure that Sesshomaru would have spent at least a _little_ more time with Inuyasha! If either of his sons discovered he was here…well, he didn't want to think about that. Some situations were best left unexplored, even in the privacy of one's own cranium.

Sesshomaru strutted proudly through the open door, clothing hastily hung around him. The events of the night had undoubtedly put him in rare form, as a smile played across his lips, twisted though it was. Inutaisho squinted to see his face clearer, but Sesshomaru's eyes were obscured by the bangs that framed his gaze. _Damn it, Sesshomaru!_

"Wait! Brother!" Inuyasha now stood at the door, as bare as the night he was pupped. He leaned against the archway, as if his own weight was one pound too much to bear.

Sesshomaru paused, straightened to his full and noble height, and turned back to face his brother. The light from the wall-sconced candles flickered, throwing shadow across his eyes for an instant.

"Inuyasha, I am your mate. I desire you. I do not love you, but maybe I will. Or, perhaps I won't. Maybe it's only our heat."

Inutaisho finally saw his eyes in the candle light. He grinned. They were filled with passion. _Liar! Haha!_

"This is how things have always been done! It's not a question of love or feelings. We are just doing our duty. Hell, did you really think I would submit to you so willingly on my own? Wake up! I only went along with father's words so that I could have my turn on you without resistance," the elder of the two informed a growling Inuyasha.

Sesshomaru toyed with the end of his braid. "So, have you always done everything that father says?"

Inuyasha paused in thought. "No."

"Well?" Sesshomaru purred. Inutaisho bit down on his lip as hard as he could to stop his rage from boiling into a full transformation.

"But this is deeper than that! This is natural law!" Inuyasha was silent for a moment. "What if I don't conceive?"

"Then you are obviously sterile. I will have to take a concubine." Sesshomaru took a few steps forward reaching out to touch Inuyasha's heaving chest. "But don't worry, I have great faith in you, little brother."

His hand snaked from his sternum to his neck, grazing the wound of his mark on the way. Inuyasha grimaced, only to find his contorted lips enveloped in and at the mercy of Sesshomaru.

The heat drunken youkai blew in his younger brother's ear before whispering to him. "Well, since you are so partial to tradition, then you won't mind my leave to my own _separate_ room."

"Screw you, too." Inuyasha flattened his ears against his head tightly, almost hiding them in his moonbeam hair.

"You just did."

"Keh!"

Slamming the door, Inuyasha retreated into the mating room, ready to head to his own quarters through an adjacent passage.

Inutaisho unclenched his teeth, happy to see his sons departing their separate ways. With a sigh, he stretched his long legs outward, not anticipating the tiny scrapes of his heels on the floor. He hoped nobody had heard him.

A certain somebody did, however.

Sesshomaru froze, sniffing the air for anyone in the vicinity. He whirled around to catch whoever had dared to disturb _his_ night, even if every night from now on would be _his_.

_Damn it! This whole castle smells like my father, and Inuyasha. I can't smell a thing! Hell, I smell like my father and Inuyasha!_

Inutaisho threw up the weakest barrier possible, praying that the crackling of electricity would be inaudible. Sesshomaru could look quite frightening when he was frightened himself. It was a cold strength that ran through his muscles, the intelligence that leads to detachment. Inutaisho no longer could see the likeness of himself in his son. No, at that moment his blood belonged to something else entirely.

_Damn it! Get away from me. Go! Your bed, though it contains no hanyou, is much more interesting than this hallway! _

He tried to flush every thought out of his mind as his son visually scanned the area. If he was nothing, nothing would be in his place.

Finally, after a disgruntled growl and halfhearted search, Sesshomaru decided that the invisible sound was not worth pursuing and departed. It wasn't until he had disappeared for a full five minutes that the Lord of the West finally let his guard down.

Brushing the dust from the fortress floor with his twin fluffy pelts, Inutaisho stood up and slunk over to the now closed entrance of the mating room. He gingerly opened the door, peering in on his tiptoes to make sure that his youngest son was no longer lurking within the depths.

The room looked just as familiar as the day he had been mated. Had it really been millennia since he had stood in his sons' stead? God, did he even remember what it was like to be a virgin? Hmmm. He was going to have to think about that one.

Inutaisho kicked the dirtied futon to the side of the room with his foot and stood in the spot where it had rested. Sliding to the ground, he reflected upon his night of claiming.

He closed his eyes and rested his hands on either side of his body on the stone floor for support. The magic inside the room made him feel intoxicated as it filled his chest. All so suddenly, the memories came flooding back. It was here that the Lord of the West had received boundless pleasure, sitting down the very same way, his knees bent, legs spread, back arched and fingers spidered apart to support his weight. Oh, how he could feel it even now.

Like Sesshomaru, he had never known anyone who could dominate him in battle, let alone the bedroom. That had all changed in one night.

Inutaisho clenched his fingers, his muscles reliving the distant past. To his surprise, his claws glided right through four scrapes. It was here! This was the very place he had been taken.

Then, the daiyoukai ran his palms upward, gliding over more irregular divots in the stone. A tide of warmth broke over him at the remembrance. Varying in form and slick to the touch, they had been gouged by poison acid. Inutaisho had been given an antidote against that very acid prior to the mating, so that his lover wouldn't accidentally kill him with an excited ejaculation of toxin from his claws. He grinned. Though the toxin didn't kill him, but it did leave a fantastic set of scars at the base of his ribcage.

Inutaisho rolled over on to his knees, resting his forehead on the floor, claws still entrenched in the ancient gouges. He swore he could feel the hot breath of fire on the back of his neck. Was that the brush of angel wings on his cheek or the soft violet hair of his lover come to pay its respects to the stripes on his face? In his pointed ear, a forked tongue whispered sweet nothings and dirty plans before it traced his outline. How he grieved for being able to look up and see those emerald eyes, slit like a midnight star, and feel the bellows of his mate's chest pressing lightly against his back. Inutaisho sighed.

_Ryuu…I miss you._

xXx

Inuyasha woke up bleary eyed as the rays of the morning sun attacked his peaceful rest. He struggled to use a pillow to cover his eyes from the blinding light. Man! It hurt like hell to make any kind of movement. His muscles were sore, much more so than after an intense battle, especially the ones of his inner saddle. What had he done to deserve this?

A flash of silver hair and deceptively passion-laced eyes filled his vision.

_Oh that's right. This is Sesshomaru's fault. Fucking bastard fucked me into the ground and then left. Fucking asshole._ The hanyou groaned in pain as he flipped over in his bed.

"Rise and shine kid! Welcome to the world of adulthood!"

_No, no. Go away. Can't you see what your decision has cost me, you psychopath?_

Inutaisho snatched the pillow from Inuyasha's eyes. The hanyou flailed in vain to keep the sun from burning his sight. The elder just smiled and plopped down on the bed next to his son who continued to try and ignore his father's presence.

"Leave me alone. I hardly got any sleep last night, I have hell to look forward to this evening, and my ass hurts like a mother, just like the rest of me!" Inuyasha growled. Inutaisho chuckled behind a hand. "What? It's entirely your fault anyway. Uungh! My father: the sadist."

The demon lord offered an opalesque powdery substance to his son. "Here, dump all of this into your mouth and then drink this water. You'll be right as rain."

Inuyasha, rolling his eyes, accepted the white powder. After all, what could it really hurt that didn't already ache? To his surprise, every twinge in his body died the moment he swallowed the last drop of water.

"What _is_ that stuff?" Inuyasha asked.

"Just a little mating present that my father gave to me a long time ago. You know, I used to have a mate with poisonous claws. Considering that Sesshomaru has these capabilities, I really should have given you this antidote before he came to you last night."

"Keh! Now you think of it." Inuyasha stretched out his arms behind his head. "Poison antidote. So that's why I hurt so much. The bastard was leaking. He probably knew it too"

Inutaisho mused on it. "Well, because Sesshomaru is a dog demon, I didn't think that he would affect you with such potent effects. If Sesshomaru would have been the same species of youkai that his father was…you'd definitely be dead by now."

Inuyasha tried to process what his father had just said. "Wait, what?"

"Oh yeah, the species of the daiyoukai carrier, or mother if you will, is the species of the child in a cross species union. However, the young can inherit any attacks of either parent. I thought you would be safe because we are all dog demons."

Inuyasha snorted. "I could have told you it was nonlethal. Its not the first time I've gotten a face full of claws. I just usually don't stay there on my hands and knees and let him inject it into my sides!...or my back, or my shoulders…or my-ouch!"

Inuyasha yelped when he tried to bring himself into a sitting position. The antidote hadn't healed everything apparently.

The Lord of the West held out a glass of a foul smelling green liquid. "And that one wouldn't have been fixed by the powder." He started to giggle uncontrollably. "Here's a regular painkiller."

His hanyou son glared at him, but still snatched the drink from his hands. "There is nothing funny about this situation."

"Ah, you get used to it after a while. You just kind of have to relax into it," Inutaisho sighed. He felt himself slipping back to that beautiful place that he had left behind in the mating room. Right now he just felt so…full.

Inuyasha finally put a few of his father's comments together. "Wait…you're an…you mean…"

"Uke? And loved it?" Inuyasha's father said with a slight twinkle in his eye. The hanyou grimaced. From his father, this was just too much information.

"Just uke would have sufficed, thanks."

He couldn't believe it. His father was by far the most powerful demon that had ever walked this earth. There was almost no creature that would dare to challenge the youkai lord in his glory in the whole of Japan. Somebody had actually managed to climb upon his back…and stay there? Inuyasha felt slightly saddened but couldn't explain why. The snow white purity of his father now seemed tarnished a garish black. Why? The realization of fear finally seeped into the hanyou's brain.

_Though I have the blood of this powerful demon within me, does his submission assign me his role? I just wanted a chance to be needed, even if only for one night, by the brother who had felt it none too easy to cast me aside as something below him. Is that my fate?_

The demon lord dug into a pocket that he hid deep inside his obi. His fingers kept searching, not sure where the hidden treasure was. Aha! He produced a bronze box, ornately wrought so that an Inuyoukai curved around one side of the box and a dragon swirling through the other side. Their two tails were intertwined.

_To my dearest Inutaisho _was the inscription between the veering bodies of the sculptured youkai. The engraved plate flashed like a mirror in the sunlight. He gave it to Inuyasha.

"What is this?" Inuyasha asked, flipping open the top. Inside were two things: a shimmery red powder and a claw curved, shaped like nothing he had never seen before. Curiously, he went to sniff the contents of the box.

"No!" barked Inutaisho. "If you inhale the powder, it might kill you!"

Inuyasha slammed the box closed. "You should have warned me about that earlier, Father!" Sometimes the hanyou really doubted the sanity of his parent. He knew Sesshomaru did, too. Sometimes life was just like living inside an experiment that only Inutaisho knew the protocol for.

Inutaisho placed one of his hands overtop of the box to emphasize its danger. "That powder is made from the claws of Sesshomaru's father. It is a toxin deadly beyond belief."

"You keep forgetting to say the name of this famous father. Or what he is for that matter. Why?" Inuyasha had to fight to keep his frustration from showing. He had to know what his competition would be, that unknown shadow that stood between him and Sesshomaru.

"It's complicated. That is all you need to know of our situation." Inutaisho propped his elbow on a knee, so that he could rest his chin in the palm of his hand. "His name was Ryuukotsusei. He was the last of the great race of the midnight dragons."

That was not at all what Inuyasha had thought he was going to hear. In fact it couldn't be right. Ryuukotsusei? The same dragon his father had sealed to the side of a cliff centuries ago, with his own claw, no less. _That_ Ryuukotsusei?

"Seriously, who was your first mate?" Inuyasha gasped. Inutaisho just gazed back with a strangely blissful expression of glass. "I mean, that can't be right," Inuyasha sputtered. "Like, you keep mentioning poison abilities. I thought dragons had lightning and fire attacks!"

The youkai lord sighed. "Yes they do, being of the ancient lineage of serpent youkai. My Ryuu had a few poison ones as well. They just didn't do as much widespread damage. That's not handy for a power thirsty dragon now is it?"

Inuyasha let out his breath. His deflated shoulders called the attention of Inutaisho who began to rub them.

Ryuukotsusei had once tried to kill his father, at about the time Inuyasha was born. If his prior life experiences with Sesshomaru spoke of anything, was he to be trapped into a similar situation one day?

Inuyasha leaned back into his father's hands. "You sealed your mate to a cliff? With your claw? Why?"

The youkai frowned. "I…felt like it."

"Come on!" _How am I supposed to make sense of myself if you won't tell me anything?_

"I have no intention of discussing _my_ sex life with my son." Inuyasha caught him running a finger over the dragon on the poison box.

"Oh!" Inuyasha threw his hands up in the air. "Now, that's a relief!"

Inutaisho winked. "I know, right?"

"You know, I really hate you sometimes."

"Very well then. What I have given you just might save your life." Inutaisho stated haughtily. "If Sesshomaru gives you any trouble at all, just dip your claws into the powder and scratch the beast as hard as you can on any of his markings."

Inuyasha's eyes grew wide. "You mean, you're giving me the opportunity to kill that bastard if he won't submit to me?"

"Now be nice, he's _your_ mate, not a bastard. Of course you won't kill Sesshomaru. Ryuu was his father, after all," the youkai lord scolded his son.

Inuyasha knit his brows together. "But you said it's lethal to dog demons if left untreated."

"Sesshomaru is a special case. His blood has a tolerance for his father's toxin but not completely. Dragon poison doesn't kill him. It just, well…you'll see." Inutaisho placed the box one more time in his son's hand.

"Oh, and whatever you do, do not accidentally nick yourself when the poison is on your claws. And it's probably better if Sesshomaru didn't know that this little gift of ours exists."

The hanyou nodded. Inuyasha stared at the bronze box in his hands. Somehow the key to Sesshomaru's submission was contained in vermillion powder and his father's fingernails. Just when he thought his family was weird…it got a little bit stranger. Just as his father had carried it, Inuyasha tucked the container into his obi. Today was going to be a long day.

_

* * *

A/N- I told you there would be one here too. I guess that even though this story is set in the feudal times, it should be considered slightly AU. I figured that I should answer some questions that might be raised on the timing._

_This story takes place…_

_After Izayoi has already died of her own mortal lifespan._

_While Ryuukotsusei still lies pinned to the cliff from InuT's claw._

_In an alternate reality where InuT is still alive, because he managed to kill Takemaru (from the 3rd movie) when they met on the steps of Izayoi's palace (he was able to heal himself from Ryuu's wounds)._

_Without any meeting of the human characters from Inuyasha. With daddy dearest still alive…why would pretty much anything that happened in the whole series have come to pass? Easy! Under the power of the great dog lord, none of this would have had to happen. No Kagome, no breaking of the Shikon no Tama. And Kikyou would probably still be alive somewhere, but I am sure her path would be completely different. Same with Naraku. I am sure he exists in my world, but I am not going out of my way to find him. Gah!_

_As InuT is still alive, he still owns all 3 swords of destiny. No Tenseiga/Tetsusaiga rivalry here. I have a special plan for those swords though. _

_I also wanted to point you guys toward what I saw Ryuu looking like. I found this picture done by vega sailor a while ago, and it just kinda stuck with me. I don't know her at all, but her work with the Ryuu/InuT pairing really inspired me. I encourage everybody to go look at it- nods nods. Just take out the spaces and make the x's intot's_

_hxxp / www . deviantart . com /deviation/27525096/_

_hxxp / www . deviantart . com /deviation/32901793/_

_remember, I don't know her at all. Besides, from what I have read, I know she doesn't support Sess/Inu. This is just a little glimpse into what made me do what I did, nothing more._

_Phew! Now that's over with! Thanks for reading. Review! You know you wanna._


	5. Submission

_Quick Note- This is the next uber long installment in the Topsy Turvy saga, which I try to update once a week. However, because I have a term paper due in three weeks, which I haven't started writing…so until the 18th, my updates will not be quite so regular. Believe me, I would much rather be writing on this piece instead. So I wrote an extremely long (for me) chapter to tide you all over…I hope._

_Synopsis- The moment you all have been waiting for (or in my case dreading)…Inuyasha on top. Plus a sexy solo played by Sesshomaru on the skin flute. Warning! LEMON CONTENT! FOR UNEDITED VERSION, CHECK ME OUT ON MY OTHER ACCOUNTS. Just make the x's into t's and take out the spaces. **In fact, please go to it...this version without some of the XXX parts make it unbelievably rapeish...well more than it already is.**_

_Russanya on Media Miner_

_hxxp/ www . mediaminer . org / fanfic / viewst.php / 124977_

_VixenArgentum on Adult Fanfiction_

_http / inu . adultfanfiction . net / story.php?no600005551_

_Beta- Demitra Miriam…it's a bird…it's a plane...no it's a DC reference…wait! It's Super!Dembo. Seriously guys…she's fast…and she's good (wait that didn't come out the way I wanted it to…but I just have to leave it in. Sorry Dem!)_

_Disclaimer- I do not in any way claim ownership of the Inuyasha anime. However, at the moment it claims to own me. I am looking into suing it for reparations of stealing my soul and brain. _

* * *

Sesshomaru looked at himself in the mirror. With the back of his claws, he traced down across the twin stripes adorning his right cheek. His eyes closed automatically as his fingers brushed that magic spot, the one that made his ears ring when he skimmed the flesh ever so lightly. He rubbed it again, imagining that they weren't his claws this time. 

Inuyasha was tracing every contour of his body, trying to find every little alcove that harbored his hidden nerves. It was his mate's hands, not the desperate wanderings of his own paws. His kimono dropped to the floor as the hands of the hanyou's projected image swept down his collarbone and onto his chest. The friction of the palms against his nipples only intensified with every circular revolution. The phantom Inuyasha tweaked them, smiling inwardly as they pricked up at his call. But, now! Now was the time he would travel down the waterfall of skin that bent to flow around the muscular knots of his abdominals. At the end of that heavenly trail the cusps of two mirrored slashes pointed the way for all to see.

Sesshomaru glided backwards, falling gracefully down to the end of his bed. The silk of his sheets caressed his back while his knees were free standing, feet planted firmly on the floor. He ran his hands over his hipbones, over the crimson streaks, and into his nest of soft white curls.

"_Inuyasha…_" he whispered.

Sesshomaru grasped his manhood in one hand, the hand that he wishedwas not his own. It pulsed lightly, as if intentionallyteasing its captor, daring him to touch some more.

"Oh, Inuyasha…" he moaned, wetting his lips. He had known all along that Inuyasha existed only to serve him, ever since he had seen the hanyou child carried to him in his father's arms. Even then, the little inu pup had just stared at his brother with wide, half fascinated, half fearing eyes.

"_Sesshomaru, I would never dream of topping you,_" the imaginary hanyou purred.

"I know you wouldn't. Oh!" A jolt of pleasure zipped down his spine as his fingers spun down the sides from the tip of his phallus, his back arching in pure pleasure.

"_You are so powerful, aniki. I need you to protect and care for me, just as much as you need me to love you," _said the ghost.

He began to run his hands down over his erection, one after the other, giving him the illusion of one continuous slick hollow. The muscles in his legs stood out in chords as he pushed his feet further against the floor.

"Inuyasha, right now you are every dream made complete. That is why I have waited so long to say that I…"

"SESSHOMARU! UNLOCK THIS DOOR!" An angry voice bellowed suddenly. The door rattled as the intruder shook it, smacking a strong fist against the jamb repeatedly.

Hobbling rather ungracefully, Sesshomaru threw on his kimono and ran to the door.

"Father! I was sleeping! Hold on a minute," Sesshomaru growled. He threw open the door to reveal his parent glowering at him, his hands on his hips. The younger youkai swiveled his hips slightly back and to the left, trying to hide the evidence of his past activities. Inutaisho eyed his squirming son with suspicion. Sesshomaru immediately froze, glaring at the dog lord from beneath his crimson lids.

"I have come to talk to you about tonight," Inutaisho intoned.

Sesshomaru flicked his hair back over his shoulders. "I already told you that you need not worry about your precious hanyou pup. I have things all under control."

The two inu youkai stared one another down, knowing full well that any inch given from one to the other meant victory over all. Inutaisho knew how to win nearly every fight with the angsty teen. It was all in the hair. His vanity, his untouchable aura, his pride, and his feathers were all ruffled up at the same time with the touch of a finger.

Sesshomaru dodged the hand that sought out the flaxen strands. He snarled. "Play with your own hair. I haven't done anything to upset you today."

To his further anger, Inutaisho burst out laughing. Between guffaws, he managed to choke out, "You know son, one day you are going to look back upon your 9th century and realize how stupid you sound sometimes."

Sesshomaru molded his hands into fists. "What if I don't agree to play by your little games? Who would look stupid then?"

"So you admit that you are not submitting to Inuyasha tonight?" Inutaisho cocked an eyebrow at his seething offspring. "Do you want to push me that far? Believe me. I'll know."

"What are you going to do about it? Sit in the corner and jack off as you watch that freak defile me?" Sesshomaru snarled.

"Sesshomaru, now what is the proper title of 'that freak'?" Inutaisho scolded, ignoring his eldest son's sickening insinuation.

Sesshomaru crossed his arms over his chest. "My half-breed, bastard brother, of course."

"Wrong again." Inutaisho made another swipe for the hair, inciting a low growl from his son.

"Inuyasha." If looks could kill…well, Inutaisho would have died many moons ago.

Inutaisho smiled benignly. "And who is that?"

"I already told you."

"SESSHOMARU!" he barked, his patience with his impertinent son on its last strand.

"Fine. My mate," Sesshomaru stated, thoroughly ticked off. He pulled his hastily donned kimono closer to him as it tried to unravel itself. Damn it all, now he had a headache.

He rubbed the crescent moon on his forehead, turning to go back into his chamber. The dog lord followed him in, settling into the giant armchair that filled up the corner next to his son's bed. Inutaisho sighed as he watched the young demontry to ignore his presence, first dressing properly, fitting himself with the light armor he preferred to wear on a daily basis, and tying his golden obi snug about his waist. It wasn't until Sesshomaru was wrapping his shoulder with his mokomoko-sama that he spoke again.

"Why are you still here?" Sesshomaru asked condescendingly.

"Sesshomaru, I know that this is hard for you, but if you really are the top, it will be known soon and no more will be said of the matter. Just give him what he wants, just one time, and then clean your hands of it," Inutaisho begged. The younger youkai frowned, this time more with displeasure rather than anger.

"Come now. You don't want Inuyasha to be considered the mature one of the family, now do you?" Inutaisho drawled. Sometimes he wasn't sure if he was talking to his heir or babysitting a toddler.

Sesshomaru's face softened slightly. It wasn't much, but the daiyoukai lord could feel the animosity that his son sent through the air dying down to its baseline simmer.

"What is my ritual tonight?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Just let him take you once. That's all there is to it."

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at his father. "Why?"

"Come on Sesshomaru, it's just one night. Hell, once you get chosen, you can really rub it in the next time you guys…you know, do it. Revenge is always sweet for you, or so I've noticed." Inutaisho hoped that he had done enough ego stroking. _Please, just do it._

"I'll consider it." Sesshomaru refused to look at the other occupant in the room, but he knew that if his father was smart enough he'd be able to read between his lines, especially after nearly 900 years.

Inutaisho grinned. _Victory!_

xXx

Inuyasha grabbed his ears, harshly attempting to shove them under his hair that was now braided, just as his mate's had been prepared on his night. To his dismay they caused tiny currents to be formed in the perfect river of silver. Eventually, the little triangles of flesh broke free from the bondage of their strands. He sighed. Having hanyou dog ears just didn't look as dashing when his hair was braided.

He stared down at his claws that were gilt in fine silver. Why did everything feel so second hand to him? Did they have to repeat everything in exactly the same way?

_Damn you, Sesshomaru. Even when I get to take your position from you, you still have won the right of first claim. I follow in your footsteps, just like I have for my entire life. You get the throne, you get the kingdom, and you get the favors. But what do I get? I get your outgrown clothing, I get to be your next in line, and I get to be your bitch. It's not fair and you know it._

Inutaisho slid the white kimono over his youngest son's shoulders, passing the embroidered obi once again. Watching his son's conflict with his disagreeing hair and ears had reminded him of something. "Let me help you with this," he said.

He undid the braid that bound the hanyou's mane and grabbed the small sections of hair that descended from in front of his ears. Twisting and braiding, he brought them to form a single plait that started from the top of his head, letting it lay loose on top of the rest of his free flowing hair.

"There now, doesn't that look better?" The inu youkai pointed his son towards the mirror. "I am afraid I forgot to tell our servants that the hanyou hairstyle is different than that of a youkai."

Inutaisho then took Inuyasha's hand in his, extending the boy's index finger. "This should impress your lover now." He pricked his own fingertip, so that the blood beaded up on the top. Then with his claw, he punctured Inuyasha's digit, smashing the points of blood together.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing? Wait…what!" Inuyasha was startled by the image that stared back at him in the mirror. Three violet stripes were creeping across his face, his eyelids darkening into a deep red like his brother's. However, his eyes remained a clear amber color, not fully changing over to his demon state.

"That should last you for a few hours. If you start to fade, use Sesshomaru's blood. That is unless of course you have to use our little friend in the box. I don't know if his blood would protect you from that."

Inuyasha's heart swelled with pride. He couldn't wait until his brother laid eyes upon his beautiful new form. He felt transformed. He felt sexy. He felt…in control.

xXx

Sesshomaru lay face down upon the new futon that resided in the mating room. The sun was setting, casting its dying rays through the windows for one final moment. He hadn't yet bothered to disrobe. In fact, he hadn't yet decided what he would do about his current situation. However, his father had given him a convincing argument.

"_Come on Sesshomaru, it's just one night. Hell, once you get chosen, you can really rub it in the next time you guys…you know, do it. Revenge is always sweet for you, or so I've noticed."_

Perhaps his father was right. After all, Inuyasha was just a hanyou. The impure blood that sluiced through his brother had to prevent him from being the seme. Besides, his father had said 'once you get chosen', didn't he? Wasn't that victory in itself, mentioning that?

Perhaps he could keep insinuating the fact that Inuyasha couldn't take him, unless he Sesshomaru felt generous to hand out a gift. A gift that would never be given again, as the hanyou would spend the rest of his life upon his hands and knees. What better a position for a hanyou to take? The ground is close enough to lick without difficulty. The youkai smiled deviously at the thought.

Suddenly, Sesshomaru's ears pricked up involuntarily. He was coming. He could smell the excitement and anxiety on his brother's skin, even through the door.

_Do I smell fear?_ The youkai loved no smell better than the terror and uncertainty of a rival. Tipping his head back, he searched for the scent of his beloved aphrodisiac.

To his surprise, he found none. _This can't be right. He is unafraid._ There was a new scent intermingled with the essence of Inuyasha. It was the fragrance of pride.

"Hello, brother"

The words that fell from Inuyasha's mouth tasted like ice. Sesshomaru finally opened his eyes to see his mate.

"How do I look?"

Poison started todrip from the youkai's claws. "Who are you, and what have you done with my mate?"

"Really? I thought the ears were a dead giveaway." Inuyasha took a few steps toward the future lord. His purple markings stood out even more against his pale skin. Sesshomaru growled.

"Who said you could access your demon form. You know we aren't allowed to transform within the bounds of the castle, you stupid mongrel."

"I never said I did."

Sesshomaru rose to his feet. This was not the sorry, pathetic, pitiful creature his father had promised. He glared at Inuyasha, who looked back at him defiantly. If he gave anything to the hanyou, it was going to be a gift of mercy. The conceited fire that raced through his brother's blood disgusted him. Did he really think himself worthy of claiming the pureblooded youkai?

"You may not have me."

"Keh! You have to. You have no choice. Besides you know what Father sai— "

Sesshomaru lunged forward, his right fist connecting firmly with the three stripes emblazoned on one ofhis brother's cheeks. The torrents of rage within him sprang to life.

"You have no right, oututo. I will not have you take anything from me. You will feel the profundity of my mercy. Only when you see your unworthiness and beg will you receive favors from me."

Then the other fist slammed into Inuyasha's face, knocking the hanyou back into a dazed standing position. Digging his claws into the white kimono, Sesshomaru lifted his mate**'**s body and slammed him into the wall with a sickening crunch. Inuyasha spat out blood, narrowly missing his elder bother's eye.

"No, you have no right. I'll take what I want. As much as you hate to admit it, the fact that you find me such a threat means that I _am_ equal to you, you fucking asshole." Inuyasha dug deep inside himself, mustering enough strength to throw Sesshomaru backwards.

The daiyoukai sliced through his attacker's clothing, blood staining the shoulder. The promise of iron in the air excited the demon within him. _He must pay. He will pay_.

Brother stared at brother as they circled the room on silent feet, the futon as the centerpiece. Sesshomaru hated the way that Inuyasha tossed his hair, he despised the cocky smile that crossed his face and, most of all, he was disgusted that he had ever considered the idea of submitting to him for even the minutest fraction of a second.

Inuyasha stared down at his wounded shoulder. Sesshomaru could never find out about the box, no matter the cost. Removing it from his obi, he stripped off the kimono, effectively hiding the poison container in the cloth. Sesshomaru didn't notice the small thud that the discarded garment made. All he noticed was the weak, unmarred body that demanded his immediate discipline. He had to touch that body glazed in the sheen of anxious sweat, to whisper to the jugular that beat at his neck that he alone was dominant. The embarrassment of Inuyasha would be glorious, as he would claim him twice.

Sesshomaru sneered. Leaping into the air, he grasped one of Inuyasha's arms, and twisted it, forcing the hanyou to stand with his back to him. He bore down on the slightly smaller body. Sinews stood tight as they stood in that deadlocked position.

"Kneel," Sesshomaru growled. With his tongue he swiped the edge of the soft white ear that flicked back and forth in front of his face. To his happiness and surprise, the hanyou sank to his knees. With his free hand, he began to massage the muscles around his shoulders.

"Yes. Now you understand. Hmmm. Perhaps I, Sesshomaru, shall show you, you ungrateful pup, the mercy that I am capable of. Tonight, I will leave you alive."

Inuyasha saw the crumpled kimono balled up next to the far corner of the futon. If he could keep fooling his brother into his compliance, he knew he would get more freedom of position. If he acted submissive, an attack would be unexpected.

"I am sorry, aniki." Inuyasha twisted backwards to kiss his brother in fake apology. Nuzzling the crimson stripes, he gave a small whine. "Father told me to do it. You must understand."

Sesshomaru released his arm and began to stroke through the sliver hair that beckoned to him. He pulled the hanyou's hips closer to his own, pressing his erection against the side of his leg.

"You really should stop listening to that arrogant ass. One day he will be no more, and you will be at my whim. One day he will give me everything he has. Your decision tonight is very wise of you, Inuyasha. Perhaps you are worthy of me as a mate."

Inuyasha twisted around, taking Sesshomaru's face in his hands. He could feel their hearts revving in their chests as their lips connected, passion conduced from tongue to tongue. The roving claws of his youkai mate rested for a split second at the top of his hips before reaching backwards to grab a fist full of the tender behind. Inuyasha ground his genitalia against Sesshomaru's leg, feeling himself grow hard against the male he had found himself become more and more attracted to.

He had to draw Sesshomaru into a vulnerable position. This just had to work.

Inuyasha kissed the youkai's strong jaw line, then licked down the side of his neck to his shoulder, continuing to his chest and then on to his waist. Without warning he crashed flat on his back, grinning up at his brother, who wore a slightly shocked expression.

"You might have won who takes who, but I still have the say in when we do it."

Sesshomaru cocked an eyebrow. "You do, do you?"

"Yes. And I give you, right now, permission to take me here, as I lay."

The inu youkai straddled the hanyou's waist, pressing his weight down upon his mate's sternum. "There again, you are confused. I take what I want, when I want it." He leaned harder onto Inuyasha's chest. "Even the breath in your body belongs to me."

Inuyasha cursed inwardly. It felt like a ton of rocks had been bound to his chest. The stars were creeping into his vision, each new one appearing with every puff squeezed from his lungs. Perhaps he had taken the submission a little too far. Blindly patting the ground beside him he caught the hem of his kimono with a claw. Just a little bit longer...

Suddenly, the pressure released. Opening his eyes, he was greeted with the gloating, wanton gaze of his brother. He grasped Inuyasha's knees, pressed them apart, and filled the void between them with his hips. The hanyou jumped as Sesshomaru lowered himself down so that he was just touching the tips of their members together. The youkai laughed.

"I will have you now. I want to see the look on your face as I allow you to climax. I want to see your gratitude."

"Sesshomaru…" Inuyasha stalled. _Damn it! Where's the box?_

Sesshomaru bent down to lick the mark. Inuyasha could feel his body start to wrack with spasms. Why did it have to feel so good when he did that? He ran his free hand over the youkai's ribs. What if he did give in to Sesshomaru? After all, it felt strangely fulfilling to be sharing the heat of his older brother's body, languishing in the caress of his possessive tongue. As the thin but soft lips of the daiyoukai groped his own, he felt his will to move ebbing away. Strangely, he had never felt more secure in his life than he did now beneath Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha began to draw his hand out of the shed kimono in defeat, when he hit the hard metallic rim of the inu and ryuu youkai's joined tails. It had been there all along, much closer to his body than he had ever anticipated. Sliding the claws on his middle and index fingers into the box, he coated them in the blood red powder. Suddenly, submission was no longer an option.

The hanyou withdrew his hand, and stabbed the claws into the crimson markings that slashed at Sesshomaru's hips. Both fingers had found their mark in a stripe. Inuyasha clenched his eyes together, anticipating the worst. Just then, Sesshomaru let out the loudest, most painful cry Inuyasha had ever heard. It burned his ears; he could feel the raw emotion bleeding from his brain.

"Onegai, aniki," he whispered.

Pain, like acidic fiery knives sliced into Sesshomaru's side. He wanted to howl. He wanted to rip his own poison claws into the hanyou. He wanted to kill. Just when he had shown some softness, Inuyasha had betrayed him. His senses were electrified, amplified with pure hatred.

Sesshomaru braced himself to give a massive attack, a lunge at the half breed's throat. Oddly, he felt as if his paws had been made of lead.

_That's unusual._

He tried to straighten his back so that he could throw more of his weight into the attack. Nothing.

_What is going on?_

Angrily, the youkai called upon his true form, feeling the heady strength lend him its power. He focused his mind, visualizing the giant dog in all its demonic glory. His pre-transformation ritual ultimately unlocked the channel that separated his mental self from his physical self. There, now he could see the gigantic canine clearly in his mind's eye.

_I don't care if this room is not big enough to hold me. I will kill this son of a bitch._

He called upon the air in the room to aid him in transformation, to whip him into a cocoon of power.

_Inuyasha_ you_ will pay dearly._

Sesshomaru could see that the monstrous canine was now in perfect form in his mind, ready to loom over the unsuspecting hanyou once unleashed. He flashed his eyes and...

Nothing happened.

In fact, the true form in his head was now no longer standing. He could clearly see in his mind that his conjured demonic self was now forced into a sitting position, and then pressured to submit by an massively strong and invisible force; the once proud and terrible inu being turned into nothing more than a whimpering puppy, its monstrous body whining at the impending black shadow that was steadily moving towards him, trapping him.

_No! This can't be!_ Sesshomaru thought as he finally realized what his mind was showing him. His true inu form was being pinned to the floor by a violent, monstrous dragon which could only mean that... that if he couldn't conjure his true form by summoning it through his mind he couldn't transform at all! The poison of his dominant dragon half was forcing the weaker inu into submission!

_So, Inuyasha, you know my secret. Though I am full youkai, I am half-breed, too._

Inuyasha opened his eyes finally. Sesshomaru was staring at him blankly; his only movement was the soft up and down of his breathing. With a tentative hand, he withdrew the claws from his scratches, looking at them in amazement. There was not a trace of blood or poison left upon them. Still, there was no motion from his brother save for a blink every few seconds.

_What is wrong with Sesshomaru? I know I would be pissed as hell. Why won't he move?_ Then, realization came to Inuyasha. _He's paralyzed. The dragon powder has neutralized his dog form. I wonder who else knows about this?_

Inuyasha crawled out from under Sesshomaru's body, which was still propped up on its hands and knees. He had to see what had happened. Right where the wound should have been, the stripes at his hips had turned a deep purple. Inuyasha ran his hands over Sesshomaru's sides and down his thighs. He had never been able to just observe his brother's physique like this before. In the world of youkai and men, he truly was a masterpiece of the flesh.

Inuyasha climbed onto Sesshomaru's broad back and lay against him. Why was he always so surprised to feel the living heat from his brother's body, when he half expected his naked skin to be greeted with frostbitten kisses? He enveloped the helpless youkai in his embrace, resting his cheek against that of his mate.

"Sesshomaru, I will not gloat over your conquered body like you have mine. As mates, I am your other half, and you are mine. Now and only now are we complete."

Looking over at Sesshomaru's face, he saw the nothingness that still filled his eyes. _At least in this position_, Inuyasha thought, _I won't have to stare into that creepy emptiness_.

Inuyasha found the jar of oil and coated his hands in the lubricant. Remembering the uncharacteristic reverence Sesshomaru had shown him, Inuyasha primed his aniki for his entrance. Why did he feel so guilty? This was his right. And if Inuyasha became the one to bear pups, he knew he would pay for this night thoroughly.

LEMON CONTENT EDITED SEE ME AT MM OR AFF.

_So this is how it feels to be the one in control..._

LEMON CONTENT EDITED SEE ME AT MM OR AFF.

He flicked his tongue over Sesshomaru's left shoulder. "I know you like this," he whispered in his ear. "You can't hide anything from me."

Sesshomaru knew this was true. _I am undone. You have shattered me. __Inuyasha, because of you, I disgust myself._

"I knew this was the only way for this to happen. I just wish that you could speak."

_Why? Would you enjoy me cursing at your miserable self at your empty victory?_

"I wanted to hear the dog tear loose from your throat when I make you come."

_Like I would ever give you the satisfaction. The spilling of my bitter seed on the ground should be enough._

Inuyasha bit his lip, almost certain that he knew what his brother was thinking.

"You can't honestly tell me that if our positions were reversed and you were the hanyou that you wouldn't resort to the same thing."

Sesshomaru paused in his thinking momentarily before he quickly shoved that ludicrous idea out of his mind for the time being. _As if I would ever-!_

LEMON CONTENT EDITED HERE AND ALSO RANDOM LINES FROM BELOW. SEE ME ON AFF OR MM.

"Aniki," he whispered. "Tonight, I will claim you as mine."

Having briefly nuzzled Sesshomaru's neck, he then bit down as hard as he could where his throat met his shoulder, digging his canines into the white flesh that mirrored the placement of his own mark. At that exact minute, their bond was finalized.

Sesshomaru was held captive by memories from long ago hurtling at him from every corner of his brain. Inuyasha in their father's arms, the day he was brought home to the castle. The tiny inu hanyou waving a wooden bokkan as Sesshomaru was instructed to teach him basic combat. His brother jumping from tree to tree, trying to escape him after he had stolen his preciousmokomoko-sama.

Last but not least, the recent days came to join them. The expression of awe on the hanyou's face as he opened the door on the first night. The tender way he returned a kiss. The feeling of his forehead resting on his chest after making love. He knew Inuyasha felt the same flood of thought, in his own private picture show. His body had only slightly relaxed, the tension still apparent to the youkai below.

_Please go away. Leave me alone. Don't you ever fucking touch me again._

Inuyasha did not go away. Grabbing his blood drizzled white kimono, he began to clean Sesshomaru's body, wiping off the rivulets of their sex. Then, spreading him wider, he licked the last remnants away from his rectum with his tongue. Sesshomaru took in air sharply.

"I will take care of you," Inuyasha said. "But that's only when you can't care for yourself."

Grunting, he lifted Sesshomaru's upper body, folding his arms to his side. It was only the weight that gave Inuyasha difficulty; the joints in the muscular body moved wherever the hanyou bade them. He leaned back, pulling the daiyoukai's body flat onto the dry side of the futon. Inuyasha nuzzled into his brother's side, pulling his head to Inuyasha's sternum. He remembered the flush of joy caused by this same simple action after Sesshomaru had claimed him for his own purposes. Curiously, he peered back up at Sesshomaru's face. It wasn't quite as full of nothing as it had been, but the fire that inspired him into dominance was gone.

Inuyasha felt accomplished, but still slightly dissatisfied. He had taken Sesshomaru, but it was against his will. In fact, Sesshomaru had acted utterly shaken when Inuyasha had entered the room, defensive almost. He had even accused Inuyasha of being someone or something else. If things had been different, could the outcome of this night have been changed?

"I truly am sorry, aniki. This wasn't at all what I had intended. He didn't tell me what it did." Inuyasha licked the stripes on Sesshomaru's face in consolation.

He peered down at the stripe on his hip that had turned purple at his attack. The hue was fading back into its original color. How long it would take to change back completely, he had no idea. He didn't want to be there when Sesshomaru regained the use of his body, but he didn't have the heart to just leave him in the room either, used and discarded. For now, they would lay together. He knew it would be a long process of healing the wounds that had been inflicted tonight.

Sesshomaru could hear the beating of Inuyasha's heart in his chest as the hanyou held the demon close. He fought to keep awake, but the effects of the poison had made him sluggish. The distress and exhaustion of the night took hold of him, the constant music of the heartbeats soothing him into a much needed sleep.

_I am still mad at you, half-breed, but I, Sesshomaru do not blame you. Someone else gets that honor._

xXx

Inutaisho had approached the door at the sound of snarling and growling. He should have known that Sesshomaru would not have enjoyed Inuyasha's new image, but he just couldn't bear to see his son so dejected over his appearance. He would wait just a little longer. If Sesshomaru won, he was going to have to go in there, whether the boys liked it or not.

_Come on Sessh. You don't have to defend your ego tonight, not with your mate,_ he pleaded to his son with the ears of stone.

Thud! Two bodies crashed against the door. Inutaisho winced. Oh, Kami! That had to hurt. He hoped that Inuyasha could handle himself. He had to. There was no other alternative. One false move and Sesshomaru might decide to kill him. The double sided bond was not yet complete. The influence of Sesshomaru's mark on Inuyasha might also lure the hanyou into a more compromising position than normal; an unrequited mark was always dangerous.

Then there was silence. Inutaisho rested his hand on the doorknob, straining his ears to hear any sound at all. There was only rustling and the muffled whispers of Sesshomaru's voice. _If you killed him, my life would be over. What are you doing, my prodigal son?_ Closing his eyes, he braced himself for the worst as he started to turn the knob carefully.

Then like the breaking of thunder, Sesshomaru's scream resonated throughout every corridor of the fortress. Finally, his question was answered. Placing his hand back at his side, the dog lord shook his head. Poor Sesshomaru. He might have asked for it, but…ouch! With that, he returned upstairs to his bedroom, finally at some semblance of peace now that he knew Inuyasha had the upper hand.

Tossing and turning in his bed, the dog lord however found that the memory of Sesshomaru's pain was going to keep him awake. For his son to show that much of what he had deemed a weakness, Inuyasha must have used a good amount of the powder. Inutaisho knew it had been a very long time since Sesshomaru had been subjected to the poison. In fact, the last time he had ever been subdued by it was when he was just a puppy. Ryuu had always been a harsh disciplinarian, but as to what the dragon considered a "claw bearing offence", the intelligent inu pup had learned early on.

_That scream!_ Inutaisho sat up in bed, trying to shake out the memory. It had to be done right, regardless of how painful it might have been, didn't it? Blast it all, he needed to walk. If he deadened his body, eventually his mind would follow. The moonlit corridors of the castle were always so beautiful and soothing this time of the night anyway.

As he rounded the corner near his sons' quarters, he heard slow but sure placed footsteps. He sniffed the air to determine the walker. He would much rather see one of his sons than the other, after this nocturnal ordeal. To his surprise, he could not determine which of his sons had come up to rest. Standing on the tips of his toes, he peeked around the stone wall. From there behind the corner, he could see through the open door into Sesshomaru's room. What transpired before his very eyes amazed him.

Sesshomaru was fast asleep, head resting against Inuyasha's shoulder. The hanyou was cradling his pureblooded brother, visibly shaking under the demands of the youkai's weight. Inutaisho was stunned. His hanyou son must have carried Sesshomaru to his room all by himself; that meant all four flights of spiral stairs, too. Inuyasha had wrapped his love up in a silk sheet while he himself wore a bloodstained kimono. Gently, Inuyasha lowered his brother onto the bed, so that he might rest comfortably. Grabbing the mokomoko-sama that wound around the chair, he wrapped the luxurious fluff around Sesshomaru's body. The youkai shifted in his sleep, burying his nose in the fur.

Inuyasha stroked the long silver hair of his mate before fingering his own mark. "I never imagined I would be sorry for this moment, but I think I am. Maybe it would be different if you hadn't bitten me first."

Inutaisho stood calmly, waiting for Inuyasha to depart for his own bed. He always seemed to witness the private moments of other people's lives, whether he meant to or not.

Closing the door behind him, Inuyasha pondered for a moment the meaning of his actions. When he had meant to leave the mating room, something had made him turn back and return to the sleeping youkai. The flecks of good in his spirit pulled at his pride, spreading a twinge of guilt. _What if Sesshomaru didn't make it back to his bedroom before sunrise? Would he be even more humiliated to wake up and see the aftermath of this night?_

If it had been any other time in his life, he probably would have left his brother there, sneering as he closed the door. Perhaps if he was feeling particularly boastful, he would have figured out a way to lock Sesshomaru in the room, forcing him to relive his submission over again. But something had lent him kindness.

Inuyasha rubbed his forehead and leaned against the wall. "I think I know what you have done," he whispered. "You might be- no you definitely are a bastard, Sesshomaru. But in spite of all your shortcomings, I think I'm…"

The hanyou's face pulled into a half smile. "I think I'm falling in love with you." He began to walk towards his own room. "But you don't need to know that, you arrogant asshole."

Inutaisho smirked. The veil of sleep was finally tugging at his eyelids. Gone was the scream of pain and the worry that plagued his brain. No, he was definitely far from resolving all of the family matters, but one thing tonight had swung in his favor. Doggedly, he continued the moonlit jaunt to his bed.

_All is well in my world.

* * *

_

_I encourage you to go read the unedited version. It is a little softer. Unfortunately those parts had to leave -makes sad face-_

_Review, please! Nothing gives an authoress more inspiration than a word from her readers. I try to reply to each and every one of you, unless circumstances don't permit. Much love! Russanya  
_


	6. Requiem

_Quick Note- Hooray! The term paper is dead! I can actually start writing things again. And those stories that I have promised to people…they will be written. Yay! I am so excited!_

_You guys crack me up. It seems that I have 3 camps of fans: those who support InuT, those who support InuY, and those who support Sess. This entertains me to no end as I read the reviews. Thanks for showing so much enthusiasm. I never dreamed that people would like this as much as they have._

_Synopsis- The…errr…swinging past of InuT, and more of asshole!Sesshomaru._

_Beta- unbelievable Demitria Miriam, to whom I am eternally grateful for editing another long ass chapter_

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. However I do own yaoi doujinishi and that is almost as good as the real thing._

**_Warning- Darkest chapter yet. I promise you, this is the darkest one you will see. Things must get worse before they can get better. I know I know. I want to smack Sesshomaru too sometimes. I am such an angst whore. _**

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_From the memory of Inutaisho – 200 years into the past_

Inutaisho wiped the blood from his gaze, the white fur on his paws growing matted in the coagulation. His canine body had sustained heavy wounds; a jagged gash was carved into his side, showing the vestiges of pearly bone in the crevasse. Bending over, more pain shot through his body, at least four broken ribs screamed in disapproval. He cursed as he transformed back into his weaker human form, where he could conserve his youki and heal.

The dog lord stabbed the blade of the Tenseiga into the ground, so that he could hold up his injured form upon it.

_Please, give me strength to do what is right_, he murmured to the sword, feeling the blue aura being called to his soul. _Please, someone, tell me that what I am doing is right._ The hilt of the sword was slippery from the blood gushing from his finger tips, nearly preventing Inutaisho from keeping his grip. The space of raw skin where his claw once grew hurt like nothing he had ever experienced.

Inutaisho closed his eyes, focusing intently on the healing power of the sword. A new claw began to sprout, covering the smarting open sore.

_I'm sorry Ryuu. This is just something that I had to do._

He opened one eye, finally daring to glance at the cliff that rose up to meet the sky. His lover's dragon arms were frozen in an absentminded clawing motion, the curve of his spine rearing up to his full height. The purple-scaled head lolled off to the side in charmed sleep, the silvery mane echoing Inutaisho's waving hair in the moonlight. At the center of it all, a giant claw, broken and uneven at the base, protruded through the heart of the slumbering dragon.

He needed just a few minutes now, the power of the sword had nearly healed everything. The only thing left was most of the open wound in his side, now just a deep cut; the bones had finally knit together. However, it would still be a while until his energy returned to normal. He hoped he had enough time just to seal the cut.

An icy pain stabbed through his heart.

_No! It can't be! Please don't die!_ Inutaisho let go of the sword and panted heavily at the exertion of being away from the hilt. At least now he had the strength to stand up unaided when he fought. Again, that icy grip closed its claws around his soul. _Hold on, my child. Your father is coming to save you._

The dog lord summoned back his inu form once again. He had to tell Sesshomaru what had happened here, even if his only son would fully disapprove of his actions. Well, the teenage inu youkai was his only son for now; he had no idea of the sex of his new child. He just could feel the pain of the pup squirming in the womb of its mother, the blood that made up its demon half calling to the male who had mixed in his incomprehensible power.

Inutaisho looked first to the moon, then over his fluffy shoulder at his mate sealed to the cliff. He whined, bounding back to the dragon and nestled his muzzle in the mane. Tenderly, he licked the side of the long snout and the cheek of the pale mask in his forehead.

_Please forgive me, my love. For tonight, for every time I have ever wronged you. I will come back for you and will pay any cost. But I will not allow it to die!_

_Could you ever kill your own son? Could you raise your sword and drive it deep into Sesshomaru's chest? If his life blood ran over your hands at your own doing, could you ever live another day on this earth, not believing that you should rot in hell?_

He felt the presence of another full-blooded demon nearby. _Sesshomaru._ Before he rescued his newborn child, he had to tell his eldest the truth. Casting one last look at Ryuukotsusei, he howled painfully into the heavens.

_Ryuu, I will always love you. _

The great inu hurtled headlong into the forest, towards the young teenager who stood sulking in sheltered meadow.

"Sesshomaru!" Inutaisho called to his son.

Sesshomaru looked up at his father, confusion welling up in his eyes. "Where is he?"

"Son, when you have children of your own, you will understand why I had to do what I did tonight." The older inu morphed back into human form.

Sesshomaru's eyes grew wide as he noticed the blood that had soaked through his father's kimono, staining the white fabric closest to the rim of his armor. It now dribbled down his arm onto the insides of his gauntlet straps.

"You killed him, didn't you. I can't believe you! You killed your own mate. YOU KILLED MY _REAL_ FATHER!"

"SILENCE!" Inutaisho barked. He couldn't believe that Sesshomaru could have accused him of such a heinous crime. The wound in his side began to throb again with his overexertion.

"I could never do such a thing," he whispered as he panted. "I love him. Kami-sama, I sealed him to the sacred cliff of Musashi."

Sesshomaru looked away from him. "I'm not as stupid as you'd like to think I am. I know you that have been fighting a lot recently. What have you done to him?" Sesshomaru questioned.

Inutaisho bit his lip. He was going to have to find out sooner or later. "I have a child from another. A mortal woman. I saved her life once, and things just happened."

"What?"

"I had no idea that I could bear a child with a mortal woman. How was I supposed to know that I could impregnate her when I have had the experience of carrying you in my body, nourishing you with my own flesh and blood?"

Sesshomaru closed his eyes. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Spurred on by his son's silence, Inutaisho continued on.

"She was vulnerable and needed my love. I didn't think one night of strictly physical love would change anything. Unfortunately, she was a princess and she fell in love with me, so her pregnancy was regrettably high profile. Her betrothed is very angry and is threatening to kill both her and my son. They may even be dead already."

The blood poured even stronger down the inside of Inutaisho's arm. _Hurry. Please just say something._

"You cheated on my father, and now you expect me to help you save your bastard child and his whore of a mother."

Inutaisho gulped. "Yes. I know I screwed up, but I believe that, as a family, we can fix everything again. I love you, I love Ryuukotsusei, and I love my unborn child, along with the mother of that pup, if even it is just because she carries my seed in her womb."

For the first time in his life, he saw venomous hatred spring behind Sesshomaru's gaze. All the warmth from his body seemed to stop, being cased by invisible scales. The inu teen thrust out his chest, making the dog lord nearly gasp with recognition of this aggressive posture. Sesshomaru had instinctively shown Ryuukotsusei's initial battle stance.

"I refuse," he sneered.

Inutaisho turned his back to his son, gazing once more at the sky. He had hoped that the full moon would bring out the most doglike of his characteristics, the will to protect one's family, the need to fight for the love of another. How wrong he was.

Another spirit attack lanced through his core. _Damn it! I don't have much more time here. Please, just let me survive long enough to save my pup!_

"Do you have something to protect?" He called over his shoulder to his son. The twin fluffy pelts from his shoulders waved in the wind. Inutaisho didn't really expect Sesshomaru to answer. _Kami, I know I do._

"If how you cast aside Ryuukotsusei is the way you protect someone, I want no part. I love no one. I feel only duty and the desire for power." The waves of the ocean crashed nearby, adding an even more ominous tone to the young demon's words.

The older inu took a deep breath. _Gain a child, lose another. _Out of the corner of his vision, Inutaisho noticed Sesshomaru eyeing the three swords that poked out from his obi. Instinctively, he placed a bloody gauntleted hand over the three hilts. _Oh, no. Not this, too._

xXx

Sesshomaru curled tighter against his fluffy. He tried to open his eyes, but he was just so groggy. He didn't remember ever coming back to his room last night, let alone wrapping himself in the mokomoko-sama. Perhaps his mating had never happened after all. No. That couldn't be right. He never remembered his dreams. Why would he start now?

The inu youkai finally awoke enough to look around his surroundings. He had been wrapped in a silk sheet and was lying crossways on the bed, as if somebody had just put him there. Other than that, he had no idea how he had happened to end up in his room. After _that night_ had happened, his memory blanked out as to what went on after being hugged face first into Inuyasha's chest. Sesshomaru sighed. No matter. What is done is done. What must happen is only the beginning.

He didn't really feel like going anywhere, or doing anything; his bed just called him back again and again as he attempted to sit up.

_Who am I kidding? I deserve a day off. Everyone else can just fuck off._ However, he knew that eventually somebody would try to pull him out of his room. Summoning up enough energy to break the fluffy comfort of his bed, he locked his door, moving his dresser over in front of it. Several large trunks braced the dresser for even more support. Pleased at his accomplishment, he flopped back into his bed, this time squirming under the covers and covering his head with his fluffy pelt to keep out the light. He felt like shit; he wasn't going anywhere.

After the demon had finally fallen asleep, he was roused to the living once more by an incessant itch. Sure that it must be some fluke of nature, he rubbed his cheek into his pillows before flipping onto his other side. There it was again! This time, he scratched at his cheek with his long inu claws, yielding a tiny youkai that jumped into the palm of his hand.

Sesshomaru clapped his hands together, squashing the flea's body for old time's sake. "Myouga. What are you doing here?"

"I flew in the window, my lord. After you had been asleep for two days…my master began to worry about his eldest son."

"Two days!"

"Why yes. Inutaisho-domo said that you had some sort of allergic reaction, and wanted me to check on you every few hours. He and Inuyasha have been worried sick, but of course, there are matters of empire to attend to…Inuyasha is out hunting for the third night dinner, and your father is in a meeting with some very important diplomats. Of course, I am here because tasty blood is what I love. And of course, if it comes with my job description, I must oblige."

Sesshomaru blinked his eyes. _Two days. TWO DAYS! I'm going to kill that bastard once I get a chance. An allergic reaction my ass! An allergic reaction to dragon claws!_ Once again, he attempted to rouse himself by stretching out. He really felt out of sorts with himself, almost as if his energy didn't belong completely to him at all.

"Now that you are up," the flea continued. "I will tell your father that you are well enough for the Dinner of Decision. I must go now. He will be most pleased. Not to mention that Inuyasha will be so happy to see you well again, my lord."

_Dinner. _The word repulsed Sesshomaru, why he did not know. The mere thought of food just made him want to barf. He didn't want to know what would happen if he actually _saw_ food. Damn the poison.

"I do not believe that I will be attending. Please tell them that I send my _finest_ sympathies with that message," Sesshomaru said sarcastically. "If somebody hadn't exposed me to poi- er, I mean an allergen, I wouldn't be feeling quite so ill."

"Nonsense. I just tasted your blood. Your youki has already full recovered from its battles. You will be fine in a few hours."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Myouga just smiled as he looked at the young lord. He couldn't believe what he was witnessing in that very room. Sometimes, it paid to be a flea.

"Oh, it's probably nothing. I'm sure it has to do with something else, as I taste no toxin, but what do I know, I am just a flea." Giving a hasty bow, he flew as fast as he could to the Lord of the West. He couldn't wait to tell his secret to him. Even though it was technically against protocol for the Lord to know about this before the dinner, Myouga was sure that he would burst and tell the entire castle if he didn't say something to _somebody!_

At the flea's departure, Sesshomaru stood up so that he might go to the baths. He must have had a troubled sleep; sweat made his hair and his sheet cling to every part of his body. Quickly, he dropped the sheet in favor of a light yukata, and went to go down into the private bath that his father kept near his quarters.

Ugh! Now he had a headache. What else was going to go wrong? Everything about him just felt awful. His legs and back ached, and he was tired, not to mention the nausea he was experiencing right at this moment.

No poison! The flea had to be telling him quite the whopper to keep up his father's untarnished image. Damn it! He was in such a foul mood.

Finally, he reached his father's room and descended the stairs that led to the only private bath in the entire castle. _For all the ladies and gentlemen that he invites over to spend the night_. Sesshomaru snickered inwardly at the thought. If his father so much as thought about dallying with courtesans…

The water was a pleasant temperature; the water level rose over his body with every step he took deeper. How amazingly light he felt suspended in the pool. Reaching over for the soap that rested upon a stone ledge, he began to wash the grime from his hair and body.

Much better. Now he could stand to look at himself in the mirrors that lined the walls. The dirt and shame was now gone from his body. He stood up fully and walked to the shallow end so that he might admire himself in the mirrors, in which the parallel reflection echoed Sesshomaru's perfection an infinite amount of times. He loved this room.

Sesshomaru frowned. Something was slightly off. But what was it? He stared more intently at his reflection, annoyed that something dared blemish his image. He didn't look quite so strong and powerful today; some of his harder edges had rounded slightly.

_By all this inactivity over the past two days, did I gain weight?_

The dog youkai rubbed his abdomen as he wondered. _How much did I gain? Five, ten pounds?_ Why did this day keep getting worse for him?

Still rubbing in the absentminded circle, he thought harder. _This is ridiculous. If I have been asleep for two full days, then I have not eaten in two days. I couldn't have gained weight._ Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. The only thing that could make his day worse would be that dinner, if by some strange quirk of nature he was declared…

Sesshomaru's eyes flashed open and he moved his other hand down to rest on his stomach.

The aches and pains. The nausea. The fatigue. The weight.

_Oh, no you don't! No. No! NO!_ He had to do something and do it quick. Looking over his shoulder into his father's room, he noticed the swords lying in their racks. The panicked inu demon did not know how he was going to do this; he just knew it had to be done. With a shaking hand, he reached for the Tetsuseiga and unsheathed it.

_Oh well._ He thought. _No pain, no gain._

xXx

"Hey! Have you finished your business for today, yet?" The inu hanyou called out.

"Yeah." Inutaisho waved to his son, who was walking towards him with a freshly killed buck slung over his shoulders. "Nice kill. You don't see many regular eight pointed stags in this area of the forest anymore. The demon ones have nearly forced the native deer out."

Inuyasha shifted the deadweight to be a little more comfortable. "Today must be a special day."

"Indeed it is. I hope your mate is awake. No matter how stubborn he is, I'll never feel right without his constant dyspeptic countenance sulking around." Inutaisho smiled nervously.

"Yeah. Just between you and me, I'm a little afraid to see him. Do you think he hates me?"

"No. He can't hate you. You marked each other. If he hated you, he would hate himself." Inutaisho ran a hand to smooth out the sides of his ponytail. "If he's going to be angry with anyone, it will be me."

"You?"

"Yes, me. None of this would have happened without me. I live my life to be the devil's advocate, but this time, I may have outdone myself."

Ever since Sesshomaru hadn't awoken, Inutaisho's sense of security had faltered. Yes, he had made Inuyasha fall for Sesshomaru, but he hadn't anticipated the consequences of the powder.

_I should have told Inuyasha only to use a tiny amount, or maybe I shouldn't have tried to raise Inuyasha's spirits beforehand. _He knew the basics of what would have happened, he just didn't know to what scale. Besides, he had never used it on his son, only his dragon mate had used it in the direst of situations. _I just try to do what I think is right, but it just never goes the way I planned. Because of my stupid impulses, I break my family apart. Without even trying, I hurt Sesshomaru and Inuyasha, just like I hurt Ryuukotsusei. Boy do I have a talent for fucking up._

"Dad, you have nothing to worry about. You _always_ get him to do what you want. I think you're the only demon who can." Inutaisho looked into the idolizing gaze of his youngest son.

"No, I don't." Inutaisho remembered very clearly the one and only time Sesshomaru had directly refused him aid. "And that time, I betrayed him very badly, too."

Inuyasha looked puzzled. _My father couldn't betray anything._ "You haven't betrayed anyone. Sesshomaru was probably being a bastard that time, anyway."

"No, that's not it. As hard as it may seem, he hasn't always been cold. He is cold because of me." The Lord of the West looked towards the sun in the east, just simply thinking. "Here, deliver that animal to the kitchens so that it may be cleaned for dinner. Come right back. There's some place I would like to show you."

Inuyasha sprinted to the castle, his super speed allowing for his return in under a minute. "So, where are we going?"

Inutaisho faced the east. "Jump on my back, I can fly us there with very little time to lose."

Throwing his arms around his father's neck, the hanyou held on tight as they rocketed towards the unknown destination together, encased in a blazing ball of light. Inutaisho focused on the inward pull of is heart to guide him. _Take me there._

Inuyasha could have sworn that he suffered whiplash from the sudden landing. As he rubbed his neck, he surveyed the landscape. There was a beach that stretched as far as he could see in all directions, hissing as the waves crashed down on the rocky shore. Great chalky granite cliffs broke upward from the ground, dwarfing the two inu demons. Inuyasha knew that the cliffs would even belittle his father in true form.

"This way." Inutaisho steered Inuyasha through the maze of rocky outcroppings. "He's over there."

_He's over there? Who's he?_ After moving through two more pairs of jutting rocks, the ground plateaued in front of one of the massive cliffs. Inuyasha gasped. He had known that the dragon Ryuukotsusei had been sealed to a cliff, and done so by his father, but seeing it was something completely different. He ran over to the dragon's side and poked the long scaly tail that lay curled on the ground. The circumference was so great that the tail stood as high as the hanyou's waist.

Inutaisho gazed up at his love, but did not dare come near him. If he did so much as touch the ryuu youkai, he was sure that he would rip out the claw in the desperation caused by two hundred years of sleeping alone.

"I bet you are wondering why I brought you here."

"Well, ummm sure," Inuyasha mumbled as he tried to take in the dragon's enormous size. "I specifically remember you telling me not too long ago that you refused to speak about your sex life with your sons."

The youkai sat down upon a rock. "Maybe I lied a little. I know the last time that I made that promise, I nearly lost Sesshomaru, and my life."

"Why did you do it?" Inuyasha walked back over to his father's side and plopped down next to him. _If your mate drove you crazy, what will that make of Sesshomaru and I?_

"Well, it is a long story." The dog lord took a deep breath. Since he had sealed Ryuukotsusei, this tale had stayed locked inside him; a burden long since needing fresh air. Sesshomaru would never be able to listen to it, but he had faith that Inuyasha would have sympathy.

"About 200 years ago, I had a fling with a mortal woman; her name was Izayoi, your mother. I never hid this from my mate, in fact I told Ryuu that I had saved a young maiden and she had offered herself to me as a token of her love and appreciation.

"Ryuu was good humored and would joke around about it saying, _'Hey stud, maybe you should bring her around sometime and see if she can stand the power of a full-blooded dragon.' _

"After that night, I continued to see her; it was thrilling for me to be with her. She praised my strength, my courage, and my control over her. This was new for me. Because I had always been the softer partner in my mating with Ryuukotsusei, this newfound power was exhilarating. Soon, I was making clandestine trips to see her at least once a week."

Inuyasha was transfixed. Realizing that his son had nothing to say, Inutaisho continued.

"Ryuu really didn't mind. In fact, there were a few courtesans that we kept at court, just in case we felt like mixing things up. Hell, I even planned on telling her about Ryuu and letting them meet. We were loyal to one another; experimenters, yes, but loyal."

Inuyasha still sat there in silence. _My father was a manwhore? _Inutaisho couldn't help but grin like an idiot at his son's expression. They were all adults here.

"One day, Izayoi did not show up when she was supposed to meet me. Curious as to where she had gone, I looked for her, only to find her scent inside of a castle on the far borders of my land. I waited for night to fall, before I climbed up the walls to see her.

"As soon as she saw me, she began to cry.

"'_Inutaisho,' she said. 'I am to be married to the Lord Takemeru of Setsuna. I can never see you again. I have never told you, but I am a princess, and as such, I am not allowed to marry who I love.' _

"I felt a little relieved, because I had the sneaking suspicion that she was falling in love with me.

"But what she told me next, was what scared me more than anything. She said that she was pregnant with my child, and that she wanted me to rescue her from Takemaru, because if he ever found out, she would be dead. I didn't know what to do. In fact, I didn't even realize that I could still have children with females; being mated with a male still did not change this fact.

"I told Ryuu about Izayoi's situation, but he was indifferent about it.

"'_It's just a mortal girl,' he said. 'And the child is only a hanyou. His life would be so miserable because he would be unable to fit in one world or the other, and her life is short as it is.' _

"However, dogs have always been the companions of men, and I couldn't forget this woman and the child of mine she carried. I knew it was the blood bond that I shared with the pup, that little life force of mine in her womb. Ryuu and I began to fight more and more. We agreed to hide all of our personal disputes from Sesshomaru, but I know he could feel the tension that grew stronger between us.

"One day, I woke up with a strange feeling in my heart. It was telling me that I had a child being born. I hoped that I could sneak to Izayoi's castle to steal away the infant, preferably before Takemaru's men took siege of the castle where my pup would be born.

"I told Ryuu that I was going to take the pup and leave, so that the princess would be safe. However, he expressed other sentiments. He claimed that I cared more about Izayoi than I did about him. In his rage, he told me the child should die, because it was not born in our love, and that even if it was conceived by accident, we demons should not meddle in mortal affairs. A quarrel became a fight, and a fight ignited into a battle. I was badly wounded, but I managed to seal him to that cliff."

Inuyasha just gaped at his father. "You mean, you sealed him to save me?"

The Lord of the West nodded. "You must remember. He is a dragon, and as such, he has a fiery temper. He didn't really want you dead, but he didn't want me to seek you out. He was threatened and understandably so. I just couldn't bear anything happening to my son, whether he was full demon or hanyou." He spaced out in the direction of the charmed dragon. "Maybe I have been too soft my whole life. Ryuu never got himself into these kinds of problems. He was perfect."

"Nobody's perfect, father."

"Love makes us blind, Inuyasha. In my eyes, he will always be perfect." Inutaisho sighed, getting ready to trudge on ahead in his story.

"Anyway, I managed to reach the castle, and was met by Lord Takemaru and his men. He challenged me to a fight, and I killed him as I entered the threshold of the castle doors. He bled to death after I sliced off his arm. When I reached you and your mother, you both had already been killed by Takemaru, so I used the Tenseiga to bring you back and carried you both home. I couldn't just leave Izayoi there, which had been my original plan. I had gotten there too late, and by then the hordes of men were beginning to burn the castle down.

"So, I brought her back to our fortress so that we could raise our son together, for the rest of her tiny lifespan. Because you would outlive her by millennia, I wanted to give you the longest memory of her possible."

Inuyasha was officially stunned. He had never known this side of the story. He remembered his mother whispering tales of true love, and a gallant rescue from a burning castle, but little else. He wondered if Izayoi had ever known the darker hues of the tale.

_No, probably not._ Inuyasha thought. _He tries so hard to protect everyone. Telling mother at that point probably would have only caused her grief._

The hanyou gazed at the pale face that adorned the dragon's head like a mask. It held little emotion, not even the look of passive sleep that most frozen demons took. Perhaps that is where his stoic sibling had gotten his mannerisms.

"What did Sesshomaru think of all this?" He wondered aloud. _You know I have to ask._

Inutaisho smiled tightly, shaking his head. _I was waiting for that one. _"Well, the night you were born, I went to him to ask for help rescuing you, having been so badly injured in my fight with Ryuukotsusei, I did not think I could do it alone.

"Ryuu and I hid our problems from him, so that he could be a happy child. Perhaps we handled that wrong. Time was of the essence; I could only give him a short explanation about your mother and you. When I asked him to accompany me, he refused, saying that he would one day challenge me to a fight to my death."

"Oh." Inuyasha didn't really know what to say. He knew that it was a difficult subject for his father. He had sensed the complexity in his father's relationship with his older brother, but wasn't sure if it was a topic he even wanted to learn about. He switched the topic entirely, to something he now wondered.

"Did you love my mother?" As a child, he remembered the affection between the taiyoukai and the human while they would play with him, or tell him bedtime stories. He could still hear the butterfly whisper of his mother's voice when she called his father her dearest and see her standing on the very tips of her toes to kiss the demon's striped cheek. How did she fit into this mess of hearts?

"Of course I loved her. You don't have to be mated to someone to love them. I tried to do my best for her, after all, she was a mortal. I mourned her passing, but after she had left me, I still felt guilty for everything that had happened. Unsure of what to do, I just maintained the status quo. I left Ryuu on the cliff, raised you and Sesshomaru to the best of my abilities, and wondered about what might have been."

Inutaisho looked up at the petrified body of his mate and put his arm around Inuyasha's shoulders. "You know, one day I'm gonna get the guts to take out that claw and get what's coming to me." He began to laugh, softly at first, growing into hysterics. It wasn't until his lungs hurt and his face ached that he subsided, staring into the sea with a bemused look upon his face.

Yet again, Inuyasha was at a loss for words.

xXx

"Milord! Where have you been?" Inutaisho plucked the flea demon up off of his shoulder.

"Oh, just around. Having some father-son time."

"I have been looking all over for you. I have some extraordinary news for you!."

"Well, what is it?" The demon lord and his son looked at the flea in anticipation.

"Master Inuyasha, I am sorry, but this is for your father's ears only. It is strictly business," Myouga gave a frantic look to Inutaisho.

"Ah, I see. I am sorry Inuyasha. I will catch up to you later."

Inuyasha looked from his father to the flea and back to his father again, begging him to let him stay. Inutaisho shook his head. Finally, the half demon ran off in the vicinity of the castle.

"What needs my urgent attention, Myouga?"

"Well, this morning, I was looking for you to tell you that Sesshomaru had awoken. I sampled his blood and there is no trace of toxin left in it at all."

"Excellent! You told him about the dinner, right?"

Myouga began to pace on the lord's palm. "Yes, I did. He does not wish to come. He still feels sick."

Inutaisho furrowed his brow. "Sick? Why? He's slept enough, and you said the toxin was gone midday through yesterday."

Myouga coughed. "Methinks my lord that your servant tasted something else in your son's blood. Or rather some_one_ else. He _did_ sleep past when the usual 3rd day rites would be."

A ghostly pallor rose from the dog lord's toes, rising up the back of his spine. "You're kidding! That's impossible!" Too shocked and frightened to do anything else, Inutaisho chewed on the end of his claws, but stopped as he noticed the annoyance in the flea's expression. _Of all the news I need today… _"You don't think that…"

"Milord, I know for certain." Myouga knew what this event implied for the Inu household.

The dog lord whispered between his fingertips. "Does he know?"

"Well, he kept blaming it on the poison, but he is a smart one when he can suppress his pride for long enough. I was hoping to tell you before he figured it out, just in case."

"Right." Inutaisho's heart began to race in his chest. No matter how much he was afraid of his son right now, he had to find him.

Sprinting to Sesshomaru's room, he found it to be empty. When he caught his son's most recent scent, he tracked it through the hallway, down the stairs, into the baths, and…into the Lord's chamber?

Carefully, he crept towards the door of his own room. _Sesshomaru? What are you doing? Are you making a trap for me? Do you know of your condition? _The room absolutely reeked of Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru, the iron of blood, and steel.

_What the hell?_

Inutaisho burst into the room, his feet splashing as they landed in some unknown liquid. Nobody came out to fight him. Cautiously, he surveyed the premises. Sesshomaru was propped up against the wall, apparently asleep, wearing absolutely nothing but his marks and crescent. Watching him slumber made Inutaisho feel a little less apprehensive, so he continued to look around. Somehow, Tetsuseiga was unsheathed, lying haphazardly on the floor, the tip trailing...

He stared down at the unmistakable purplish liquid at his feet. It _was_ blood!

"Sesshomaru!" He knelt down beside his son, shaking his shoulders. Sesshomaru slapped his hands away from him and glared at the lord down the tip of his nose.

"It is _so_ nice to see you, Father." The demon's voice dripped with antagonism.

_All this blood on the floor…thank goodness he's ok. _"Sesshomaru, what happened in here? Why is the Tetsuseiga unsheathed?"

"It burned me, and I didn't feel like scorching my hand again putting it back," Sesshomaru said sarcastically.

_This is so odd. What the hell did he do?_ Inutaisho stared first at the puddle and then at Sesshomaru's unblemished skin. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but he was intercepted by the reclining inu.

"And as for the blood. Yes, it's mine." He reached over for a robe that was hanging from a hook nearby and wrapped it about his shoulders. "I was hoping that if I let half of it pour out, maybe I wouldn't be your son anymore."

Inutaisho felt the temperature in the room plummet. That last one stung. He cleared his throat. "Well, whether you like me or not right now, we still have to have the dinner. After losing so much blood, I am sure you are famished."

Sesshomaru smiled eerily. "Contrary to what Myouga might have told you, I _would_ like to attend the meal. I just can't wait to hear who is with pup."

The young inu walked out of the door, taking care not to step in the lake of his blood.

"Because I know it's not me," he growled after the fact. The padding of his feet echoed until the distance between father and son was too great to hear.

Inutaisho dipped his fingers in the blood and sniffed them. It smelled mostly of Sesshomaru, but a little like Inuyasha as well; not at all like the Sesshomaru who had just left the room now. Picking up the sword that neither of his sons could touch yet, he noticed the same mixture of scents coming from the blade. It made him sick to his stomach.

Inutaisho had all the evidence. He knew what had happened here. His vision cart wheeled as if somebody had removed all of the air in the room.

_How could you do it, Sesshomaru? _

Inutaisho looked back upon the days events, and cursed every moment that he spent with Inuyasha, ignoring that Sesshomaru slept in his drugged sleep. If he was there before and had tried to talk some sense into the boy…

_Why must I always fail for you? _Inutaisho knew he could never tell Inuyasha about this incident. _Today, you dishonored not only me, my son, but, more importantly, your mate. _

In Sesshomaru's rage he had failed to realize the consequences of his actions. The dog demon smiled bitterly. _Just like my Ryuu. _

Throwing back his head, Inutaisho let go an anguished howl that was trapped by the stone of the walls, a requiem for the innocent.

-------

_I promise...it does get less intense. Just stick with me and hopefully the tale in my head can work its magic. Review please! I know you want to. _


	7. Oh Brother

_Quick Note- **IMPORTANT INFO**- ok. Being the science nerd that I am, I am here to tell you why there was no actual pup carnage besides blood when Sess Tetsuseiga-ed himself. In dogs, in the first half of pregnancy if there is something seriously wrong, or the pup is dead, the bitch can reabsorb the fetus into her, using enzymes to decompose the body parts into the fundamental elements that she used to make the pup to begin with. In demons I figure this process is accelerated, so by this time in the story, the pup has been already completely absorbed by Sesshomaru. And an extremely undeveloped pup I doubt would be able to survive a Tetsuseiga attack, even if Sess would. Thus, lots of blood, and the pup literally disappeared back into Sesshomaru. Ok. Veterinary medicine 101, lol._

_Synopsis- A little bit of RyuuK/InuT, a little bit of brotherly love, and just a little calm before the storm that is Ch 8_

_Beta- The most splendid Demitria Miriam…who understands what it is like to see the glorious mess who is Inutaisho in her head. (Thanks for that, lol) I know he keeps me entertained._

_Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha at all. However, the 2007 Inuyasha calendar has just come out and I already have gotten lipstick stains on it…oops!_

From the memory of Inutaisho – approximately 1000 years into the past

The sound of the whip cut through the air, striking the hollow metal of gauntlets.

Inutaisho's eyes opened instantly, his body shooting straight up and immediately taking on a crouched position of attack. The slumbering lord had been awoken so quickly, that upon his swift movements from lying down and then jolting up onto the top of the futon, he barely registered that his ankles were tangled in sheets still.

_Here I am, the revered, mighty warlord of the West and here I have my own bed linens compromising my form. Tch. How degrading._ Giving the sheets a swift swipe of claws he was quickly freed from their possessive restraint. Now. Onto the matters that had originally alerted him to full awareness.

The noises of a brawl had roused the Lord of the West from his deep sleep, and he glanced around the room warily. What on earth was going on? And where was it going on at?

_Hiss! Whap! Hiss! Whap! _

The counterpoint of the two fighters shifted to over near the other side of the room, away from the windows. The inu youkai dressed as quickly as he could, thrusting the infamous three swords into his obi. Damn it! It sounded like a lone intruder. Why hadn't his guards stopped this dumbass in his tracks?

Running down the hallway and out into the courtyard, he drew Tetsuseiga and pointed it menacingly at the center of the courtyard. And then-

_Huh?_

"Ha ha! That's the spirit!"

The dragon youkai leaped across the open space, holding his right forearm out in front of him. "Now here!" he cried.

_Hiss! Whap!_

Ryuukotsusei faked to his left and then bore right with incredible speed. "Now!"

_Hiss! Whap!_

In the very center of the grass stood their young son, looking a little tired from the flow of energy leaving his body, but quite resolved. The tips of the first three fingers in his right hand glowed a phosphorescent green.

"Here!"

_Hiss! Whap!_

A long thread of energy flew out from Sesshomaru, striking the dragon's mail covered arm squarely. As soon as the pup noticed his father, a look of excitement passed over his face and he bounded with his awkward toddler gait over to Inutaisho. All energy that had been sapped by the whip was now replenished by the sight of the one he admired most.

"Daddyyyy! Did you see what Sessh can do?" The dog lord knelt down and spread his arms wide, catching the tiny inu pup in a giant hug. Wrapping one arm around Sesshomaru in a barrel hug, the puppy giggled and squirmed as Inutaisho held his son horizontally at his waist.

"I am soooo proud of you!" The inu youkai cooed at his little son. He bounced the boy on his hip, making him squeal with joy.

With a look at disbelief, Inutaisho looked at his mate. He pointed with his free hand at the wriggling child he held.

_Him? He produced his whip of light? Now?_ The dragon just smiled and nodded, puffing his chest out proudly. _Yes, stupid. I love you._

Inutaisho set his son down on the ground once he reached his mate's side. Ryuukotsusei encircled his broad shoulders with a strong arm, pulling his lover close to his chest.

He looked down at Sesshomaru, the top of whose head barely reached the middle of his thigh. "Why don't you tell your father what you did this morning?"

"Kay!" The child's golden eyes looked almost too big to fit in his head. He wrung his hands together in front of him, fidgeting with his surplus of proud energy.

"T'is morning, when I waked up, I played ou'side an' dere was a fwog. He stuck out his tongue an' gwabbed a bug. Den I got 'n idea 'n I could do dis!" Sesshomaru snapped out his whip of light again, decapitating a flower that hung down from a nearby tree.

Inutaisho leaned his head against his mate's cheek. "Wow!" He gushed. "I couldn't make mine until I was twice your age! You are getting to be such a big boy. A fine lord you will make one day!"

"Weally?" Sesshomaru couldn't hold his composure any longer. "Cool!" He began to skip around in a circle, grinning crazily.

The happy parents settled down to the ground, Ryuu not releasing the dog lord from his embrace, letting his tail curve around the inu's body as well. "I found him laying ruin to your gardens this morning. I thought it would be a good idea to start his training early before there wasn't a single leaf left for his target practice," the dragon chuckled.

"My shrubbery thanks you profusely." Inutaisho reached up his hand, intertwining his fingers with those of his mate's. He sighed watching his only child bumble about. "He found his whip of light at only age 27. Who knew that us two idiots could create such a wunderkind?"

Ryuukotsusei tenderly kissed the inu on his cheek and then pulled the silver hair away from his shoulder to plant one on his neck. "I don't know, love. I don't know."

Inutaisho fingered the dragon's curly, purple coils of hair. "I'm not talking about now, but maybe in a couple of decades, or maybe centuries…would you like to try again? Our first one obviously didn't come out retarded or insane. The odds are good, ne?"

Just as he said this they saw, out of the corners of their eyes, a small bundle of demon puppy crashing into a shrub, apparently chasing after a lone firefly. However, the next second he gave up that arduous journey, when something black and bumpy caught his attention near his feet.

Ryuukotsusei raised an intricate brow smugly and said, "Are you sure about that?"

"Shut up," Inutaisho sniffed, chuckling all the while. "But seriously, what do you think?"

"Hmmm." Ryuukotsusei paused for a second before calling over his rambunctious son. "Sesshomaru, come here for a second."

"What?" The toddler was mesmerized with a giant beetle he had found crawling around on the ground. He scooped it up in one hand before running over to the pair of demons.

The dragon pulled his son over to him so that he sat upon his lap. "Sesshomaru, would you like to have a little brother to play with?"

The inu pup stared up quizzically, the black and lumpy beetle all but forgotten. "A bwudder?"

"Yeah," the dragon's green eyes softened. "Somebody who will look up to you. Someone for you to have fun with, teach things to, and love? I used to have one."

Sesshomaru chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. Then, almost exploding, he shouted, "YEAH!"

Ryuukotsusei helped the child stand up and the pup scampered away, still balancing the beetle on his wrist. The pup chanted "bwudder, bwudder, bwudder, bwudder" as he ran.

"Maybe I should rethink the whole insane thing," Inutaisho chuckled, shaking his head and then glancing into his lover's eyes.

A hand, complete with purple claws, caressed the matching stripe on his cheek. "Perhaps, but does that answer the question for you?" the dragon purred.

The dog lord smiled. "Ryuu, did I ever tell you how much I love you today?"

Ryuukotsusei rolled his eyes skyward, pretending to think. "Well, I don't know." He pulled the dog over slightly, sliding him through the grass so that he rested between his knees.

"Actually, you don't have to tell me," he whispered into Inutaisho's pointed ear. The warm tingling of his breath made him feel slightly dizzy. "I already know."

With that, the pair took their leave, running as fast as they could to the bedroom before their son decided to follow.

xXx

Inuyasha caught sight of his father as he walked out of his room, carrying a bucket and scrub brush.

"Hey!" Inuyasha called. Inutaisho blanched and shoved the bucket behind his body. Using one of his claws, he punctured a fingertip and let his blood drip into the already purpled water.

"Hello." The dog lord quickly composed himself.

Inuyasha instantly noticed that something was out of order. "Are you ok? What's with the bucket? You know we have servants to do the mopping."

"Oh, I know. But you know how much of a klutz I am! The bath floor was wet, there was a song stuck in my head, and I was carrying a razor…and yeah. I made a mess. Luckily I found these cleaning supplies before it sunk into the floor. If it stained, I would probably have to replace the whole thing!"

Inutaisho hoped that his son didn't come any closer. His blood didn't really mask Sesshomaru's scent as much as it used to now that the youkai had reached full maturity.

"Oh." The hanyou didn't completely buy into it, but he figured that his father was trying to cover up something even _stupider _that he had done. _Like the time I walked into the room and saw something that involved a potato, a hammock, a mirror and six lit candle sticks._

That was a day Inuyasha wanted desperately to forget.

"That's ok. You don't have to tell me what it was you did. If it was anything like last time…well I'll let you have your dignity."

"Thank Kami!" Inutaisho set the bucket down and slid it behind the door.

Inuyasha furrowed his eyebrows together. "You seen Sesshomaru? He's not in his room. I figured that Myouga had come over to tell you that, and then told you the death threats he made against you when I was gone."

"Yeah, I saw him. He didn't much want to see me though." _That was an understatement_, Inutaisho thought. "I think he might like to talk to you, though. He'd never ask me to send you to him, but I think he could use your company right about now."

"Are you sure?" The hanyou raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, yeah." Inutaisho waved his hand dismissively. "I told you, it's not _you_ he has the issues with. Just tell him that you were worried and that you are _so_ glad that he's ok. You can say you're sorry, but you shouldn't have to. He needs to know that somebody cares about him. And as his overbearing, asshole father, I just don't fit that bill. You, as his mate, do, however."

Inuyasha flattened his ears. "How come I'm the one that has to do all the work in our relationship?"

"Because if you want to get laid, it takes a little more than lubricant?" The youkai winked and touched his thumb and forefinger together.

"And I had to ask," Inuyasha grumbled. "Sometimes I really do think there is something wrong with you."

"But if I wasn't tragically flawed, you couldn't call me your dad, now could you?"

Inuyasha ignored the left handed complement. "I'm getting out of here. If you see him, tell him that I'm looking for him."

"Sure thing."

Inuyasha suppressed the urge to yell out '_A sure thing, just like you'._ It reminded him too much of something somebody else would say, namely the demon who stood directly in front of him. _Shit! He was right! Bastard! _

As soon as the hanyou turned his back, Inutaisho grabbed the bucket and ran as fast as he could outside. There was a stream not too far away that would suit his purposes quite nicely.

Upon reaching the fast flowing waters, he poured a little bit of the bloody mixture into the current. There was no sense in drawing lesser demons onto his land with a steady flow of thick taiyoukai blood in their water, especially a mixture that contained a hint of human royalty from Inuyasha's bloodline within it as well.

He watched as each drop fell and dissipated, masquerading as the color of water.

_Here I go lying again. But I don't think this truth is mine to tell._ Inutaisho hoped with all his heart that Sesshomaru didn't feel any malice towards Inuyasha. The hanyou would be even more upset than he was to begin with. He had never spoken with the hanyou about the details of what had happened behind that closed door. _Be nice to him, Sesshomaru. He's all you've got. _

xXx

Sesshomaru had perched himself on a rock, basking in the sunlight. His energy was finally returning to him; the weird feeling of having a split youki was gone at last. But for whatever reason he did feel a little…dare he say it…empty?

No that couldn't be right. He was just a little tired, that's all. After all, his body had just battled poison, been impaled by Tetsuseiga, and absorbed a pup. Who wouldn't be tired after that?

The twinge of a youkai aura made him reel around to face directly into the sunlight. But it was not a pure youkai; it had to be Inuyasha. He reached under the neck of his haori and brushed his mark. The action was like instinct, the rush of blood that the touch gave him caused him to tense and draw in a sharp breath. He noticed that the figure in the distance stopped dead in his tracks, grasping a hand to his shoulder as well. Both brothers looked up, holding each other's gaze, posed like mirror images with a single arm reaching towards their marks.

Inuyasha gingerly approached the taiyoukai. _I don't see any open hostility. Maybe the old codger was right._ "Can I sit down?" he asked.

Sesshomaru scooted over, creating a space just big enough for the hanyou to sit. Neither one had returned his hand back to his side; both swung their legs so that the heels thudded dully against the side of the rock. Inuyasha leaned in a little closer so that their shoulders grazed against one another, but Sesshomaru shifted sideways, refilling the buffer of air between them. Refusal burned the hanyou from the inside. The calls of birds filled the silence with song so that neither inu had to say a word.

"Sesshomaru, I'm sorry. I know I can probably never make it up to you, but I have to try," he whispered.

"I cannot fully accept that apology, but cannot be angry with you, either. He used you as his puppet." Sesshomaru continued to watch his feet rise and fall as they struck the stone each time. "He probably told you the powder was an aphrodisiac or something."

Inuyasha nodded. "He didn't really tell me anything at all, just that it was from your father."

"My father," he repeated. "Ah."

The hanyou looked over to his brother, hoping that maybe, just maybe Sesshomaru would just look him in the eyes. The youkai just continued to stare intently downward and outward. Flicking his ears, Inuyasha sighed. _Why does love hurt so much?_

"If you don't mind, what happened exactly? That is, if you even want to talk about it. You know what? Forget I even asked," Inuyasha sputtered. Did he just see the thought of a smile flit across his mate's face?

"If you want to ask a question, ask it and I will answer." Sesshomaru finally turned his face to Inuyasha. He looked genuinely curious.

"Oh, ok," he muttered.

"I don't see the point in lies," Sesshomaru growled. Inuyasha could feel the venom of the phrase directed to someone far, far away. In the distance, _someone _sneezed.

The inu hanyou inspected his claws. "Well, in that case, what did it feel like?"

"You really want to know?" Sesshomaru's lips were pressed into a thin line.

_Unburden yourself, Sesshomaru. If you let me care, maybe I would. _"Yeah," he answered

"It felt like a thousand fires burning through my flesh. Then, I tried to release my true form. Do you know anything about activating your true form at will, Inuyasha?"

The hanyou was taken aback at the question. He struggled to put it into words. "Well, whenever I get angry, I just feel another part of me come alive. Then I just sort of surrender my human self to my demon self. Is that kind of what you do?"

"Not really," he stated blandly. Inuyasha waited for him to continue. When he did not, the younger inu rubbed his shoulder and just smiled when Sesshomaru startled forward at the touch. The youkai glared, but only with a slight annoyance.

"My true form is not stored in my blood. It is in my mind. I inherited it from your father because the shape of one's true form comes from the one who gave birth to you. Only when I see it clearly can I let my body become what is in my mind."

"Oh. I guess it makes sense that mine is in my blood considering that I am a being of mixed blood."

"Perhaps." Sesshomaru had not really taken the time to think about the mechanics of a hanyou transformation. "When I went to call my form I saw my inner inu demon. However, the dragon poison awakened the half of me that belonged to my dragon father. Because our father was uke to Ryuukotsusei, I watched my dragon half pin my inu true form into submission and thus couldn't move."

"That sucks." Inuyasha didn't really have any better response. And, for the first time, Sesshomaru smiled.

"I know it does. In that moment, I had no control over myself. In fact I didn't even exist. All there was in the world was Lord Inutaisho and the Great Ryuukotsusei." He tapped his claws on his knee. "And in that world, there is only one possibility."

Sesshomaru watched as Inuyasha tried to sort through all of the information. _Damn you, Father. By subduing my inner youkai, you condemned me to filling your place. You were the one that made me uke, weren't you. You make me live out your stupid fantasies just because you don't have the guts to pull out that claw and take the raw love of your estranged mate yourself. When that happens I hope it hurts._

Inuyasha understood. He himself couldn't be divided into a strong inu and weak human half in his mind; there were no miniature versions of Inutaisho and Izayoi that hid themselves away in his brain. Hell, his human half and demon half could hardly share a body and proved this by kicking one another out of Inuyasha's body in rhythm to the lunar cycle. However, he did understand the struggle of having two forces at war within the confines of yourself. If there was one thing that Sesshomaru had stood for and always would stand for, it would be the control of his own destiny.

The hanyou looked over again at his brother who had resumed spacing out into nothingness. Reaching over, Inuyasha snaked his arm over his brother's shoulder. _Please, accept me. It's the only thing I can offer you._

He felt the tight musculature clench under the weight of his arm in surprise, but the youkai didn't pull away. Slowly, Sesshomaru relaxed and closed his eyes slightly. Inuyasha slid his hand down his mate's back so that it rested in the space between his ribs and his hips, pulling the two of them closer together. The hanyou rested his head on his brother's shoulder and nuzzled the crown of his head against the pure white neck.

Hesitant, Sesshomaru leaned his own head over to the side. He was surprised at how content and warm he felt to be in this quiet embrace. Timidly, he reached out and grasped Inuyasha's hand in his own and just sat there in the stillness.

"Aniki, I'm sorry for what happened," Inuyasha whispered.

"I know. I told you it wasn't your fault."

"But still. I worried about you. You were so sick."

The sun was beginning to set, and Sesshomaru turned his thoughts to the impending dinner. Perhaps because neither of them would be carrying pups, they would be able to undo their markings and redo them in a second mating. A fair mating. One that Sesshomaru knew he would win without any interference from daddy dearest.

The more he thought about it, the more that had to be the most logical course. Next time, he might even let Inuyasha have his way with him. He had learned one good thing about being the bottom. You could be a total sloth and get relatively the same amount of pleasure. Perhaps that was why his father had been so partial to just lying on his back.

Lazy bastard.

Sesshomaru ran his fingers through Inuyasha's hair, causing the hanyou to squeeze him tighter. Inuyasha was amazed at how affectionate the demon could be; did a mark really bond them this much? Or had Sesshomaru always felt something for him and now he had an excuse to express it openly?

_Maybe he had to pretend to hate me so that our father wouldn't forget about Ryuu. He didn't want to like me but he really does and was just afraid. _

Regardless, it didn't really matter now. He grinned.

"Sesshomaru?" He asked.

"Mmmm?"

"Can you keep a secret?"

The taiyoukai rolled his eyes. "Yes. What is it?"

"I love you."

That special bite pulsed with energy as he said those words. Sesshomaru was a little puzzled at his mate's confession, but he nodded. "Don't worry. I shall not tell anyone your secret, otouto."

"Good."

The two inus sat bathed in the dying rays of the sun, just soaking up the feeling of what it was like to have a true mate. Once the stars began to appear in the sky Sesshomaru wriggled out of his brother's hold. Inuyasha tried to pull him back, but his elder brother brushed his hands aside.

"I hope the dinner is by candle light," he mused, noticing the darkened skies.

"Oh shit! I completely forgot about that." Inuyasha raced forward, leaving his brother walking at a stately pace. When the hanyou realized that his brother was not following him, he frowned.

"Hurry up. It's already dark!" He growled.

Sesshomaru pointed his nose skyward and glanced at his brother from a tilted angle. "Mate or no, you still _are _an idiot, aren't you?"

Pulling his youki around him in a giant green ball, he began to fly as fast as he could to the castle of the Lord of the West. He laughed as he noticed the dumbfounded look on Inuyasha's face when he shot by him.

"Hey, asshole! That's not fair," he whined. Running as fast as he could, Inuyasha chased after the glowing orb of energy that he _knew_ was mocking him with every springing step that he took.

xXx

Back in the palace's dining room, waiting anxiously for his sons, sat Inutaisho. Myouga, being impatient as ever, bit into the lord's hand and drank deeply, earning a slap and a scold. The white haired dog could not help but wonder the whereabouts of his two sons. When he finally saw his eldest's sailing energy ball through the window, the sight of food made him queasy. Myouga hopped to his master's shoulder, sensing his uncertainty at the arrival.

"You know, a friend told me once that it is always the darkest before it goes pitch black," the flea warned

Inutaisho ran his fingers through the ponytail of his long, tied back hair. "Yes, but we can't stagnate like this forever."

Now he heard the voice of Inuyasha speaking softly, just outside the dining hall. At least he had arrived with his brother. Reflexively, Inutaisho started dishing himself some of the venison that had been heaped on the table to each plate. _You can't put your foot in your mouth if you fill it with food_, came the mantra of the day.

The doors slammed against their stops as Sesshomaru threw them open; Inuyasha was nearly hit by the giant wooden panels as they recoiled backwards Sesshomaru took his place at the table, Inuyasha moving to sit beside him. Inutaisho met Sesshomaru's eyes, quickly swallowing the secret bite he had stolen from his plate.

"I bet you have had a rough day, Father. Let's eat," Sesshomaru said dripping with a fake kindness. The Lord of the West took another bite. Who was he to argue with that request?

Great Kami, it was going to be a long night.

_Thanks a lot for the support on the last chapter you guys! You have no idea how scared I was to post. Review please! I love hearing from you all. Every view is unique._


	8. Sire

_Quick Note – I am so sorry that this update has taken forever. My course load has given me around 50-100 pages of textbook reading a night. And then I wasn't fast enough to get this to my beta before she left on a trip. cries Gomengomengomengomengomen. I will not give up on this story at all. Don't worry about it._

_Oh, and for those of you that asked, the joke about the potato, mirror, and six lit candlesticks is an allusion to an ex of mine that did something kind of…erm…stupid with those same items. I will not say exactly what so that he/she can keep his/her dignity if he/she is reading this by any chance. (Although I seriously doubt it)_

_Synopsis – The Dinner of Decision, RyuuK/InuT limeyness(XDXDXD!), and a surprise for all of you._

_Beta – The unbelievable Demitra Miriam, who makes sense out of sentences that I randomly leave subjects, verbs, and or pronouns out of. She truly has a gift. _

_Disclaimer – I do not in any way own any part of the InuYasha series. However, I do own the impure thoughts that sometimes manifest themselves in this here work of fiction. sigh Mmmmmm. Smut! THAR BE LIMES HERE, ME MATEYS! (why is Russanya talking like a pirate? O.o)

* * *

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Nothing littered the table except for scraps and bones. In fact, not a word was said throughout the entire meal, just the soft tearing of meat and the sticky sounds of chewing. Everybody in the family ate as if each morsel was an allegory for something far deeper, tearing at it with their demonic teeth. Now that it was all gone, only Inuyasha remained gnawing on a rib bone. He didn't care for the distrusting way that his mate and his father stared at one another. He knew that this meeting would be awkward, but he didn't expect it to be _this_ awkward.

Silence. Golden eyes to golden eyes to golden eyes. The whisper of hair sliding down silk. Blink. Inhale. Exhale. Glare. Twitch.

Crawling down from his hiding place in the Western Lord's ponytail, Myouga was really beginning to feel uncomfortable with the tension in the room between the three dogs. The quicker the rites were finished, the quicker he could get away and hide from the aftermath. After all, given what he knew, there would definitely be aftermath.

"My lord, I believe it is best that we begin," the flea mumbled.

The eldest dog nodded and arose from his position at the table. He hadn't told anybody about his discovery in his rooms, so this was going to prove interesting to say the least. "My sons, the powers between you have now been split. One of you has the power to give life, while the other one has the power to nurture it. Fortune smiles down upon you both."

Inuyasha's eyes looked alive with wonder and hope. Under the table he reached out his hand to Sesshomaru and rested it on the taiyoukai's leg. Sesshomaru did not attempt to remove his brother's touch, nor did he return it. He just continued to stare at Inutaisho, one eyebrow cocked in the acknowledgment of a shared secret. The dog lord cleared his throat and took in the excitement that flowed from Inuyasha in anticipation. _Even though he may fully expect to be with child, Sesshomaru, what will you tell your mate when the truth is known?_

"Myouga, go ahead and taste their blood," he ordered.

The flea paused between the two brothers, looking from face to face; unable to decide who should be unveiled first. Inutaisho flicked him in the direction of Sesshomaru. _Are you sure that you want to reveal him first my lord? _The flea thought

Myouga dug his mouth into the youkai's hand, swelling up with the deluge of thick noble blood. Something was different. He glanced over at his lord, eyes bugged out in surprise.

"Ummm…no child?"

Sesshomaru grinned and finally put his own hand over Inuyasha's, squeezing it.

The flea continued on to Inuyasha. Sure, he wouldn't have minded being the seme, but if he was uke, he did not want to disappoint Sesshomaru by being barren. _Please let me conceive._ He awaited the verdict as Myouga now sampled his blood in return.

"Master Inuyasha, you bear no child either," the flea intoned.

Inuyasha went pallid, withdrawing his grip on Sesshomaru. _What the hell is wrong with me? I rape my mate and then I can't even give him a pup for all his pain?_

Frightened, Myouga stared up at Inutaisho. "My lord, although I suspected something earlier today, I must have been wrong. Many times the first pregnancy is lost, but it is too close to the conception of the pup for the baby to have been already reabsorbed back into your son's body from natural causes. Things like that usually do not happen until the second month or so."

The flea bowed deeply and continued. "I am very sorry for my false news. The rites of mating have not been carried out right and thus must be redone at the next full moon. Please forgive me."

"I am sorry too, aniki," Inuyasha whispered to Sesshomaru. The demon responded by placing a hand on his mate's back.

"So, Father," Sesshomaru began. "Shall we have a fair mating this time, at the height of the next full moon?"

Sesshomaru continued to stare down Inutaisho. _Father, if you take this one request, I will forgive you, but just this once. I just want my rightful place without any more drama. I dislike spectacle, and I know that you do too._

Inutaisho opened his mouth, but no words came out. _Kami help me._ "Actually, in lieu of recent events, a second mating cannot be commenced."

"What?" both brothers chorused in unison, but with completely different tones of voice.

"Myouga, you were right with what you told me earlier today."

"My lord?"

Sesshomaru dug his nails into the table, the wood rotting away at the touch of his poison claws. _If you tell him, it will hurt him even more than he is hurt now. I thought you were done with pain._

"The dynamics of a mating may be switched by the same process, but only if the first pairing has produced a living child. I will admit some foul play, and believe that this might be the solution best possible for everybody's sanity."

Inuyasha was still greatly confused. He inferred that somebody had been carrying a pup but it was gone. Whose was it? Where did it go?

"Excuse me, but what the hell is going on here? Can we all just stop speaking in code? Just because I am the youngest doesn't mean I can't handle the truth!" Inuyasha growled.

Everyone just turned to stare at the hanyou. It was Inutaisho that spoke. "Since I have been asked to give up lying, I will not say any more on the subject. You might want to ask your mate."

Sesshomaru looked about the room. It might be able to hold his demon form, but he wasn't sure. He knew it was far too small to accommodate his father's full form, which would work to his advantage should the need arise.

"Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha was staring at him expectantly. The inu youkai glanced at his hanyou mate before spacing his eyes out in the direction of the dining room floor. _Curse him and our binding mark. Curse everyone!_

Sesshomaru paused, choosing his words carefully. "I had an accident," he said sharply. _And by accident, I mean your pup, brother. And now thanks to your accident, I have to suffer this all over again and more._

Inuyasha drew a hand to hide his gaping mouth, the optimist within him drawing conclusions of his own. _Sesshomaru!_

In his mind, the hanyou raced through every possible thing that might have happened. Perhaps a trip down the stairs or something just as mundane and tragic.

_He must be so sad to have lost his firstborn heir. I know he would never admit to the loss. Maybe that's why he's in denial over being able to re-mate ourselves._

"Son, I am sorry for your loss," Inutaisho said. His youkai son glared at him, and took a step back from the table.

"Now that there is nothing left to say, I will take my leave, Father, Inuyasha," he said flatly.

Sesshomaru left the table, willing his most arrogant stride to carry him away to another place. He should have done this long ago.

"Wait!" Inuyasha bounded after him. The pale youkai did not stop walking. "Sesshomaru, please!" he yelled. Catching up to him, he grabbed his eldest brother's arm.

Sesshomaru looked down at the floor. Now that his original plan had failed, he couldn't dare look his younger brother in the eyes. _Now I live my life telling half truths just like you, Father. _

He shook Inuyasha violently from him, slapping his hand away. "Don't touch me," he whispered softly. _I killed your pup in vain, and now am forced to feel your disgustingly pure physical contact, even if your intrusion was unwanted. I need nobody's pity. Especially not yours._

Watching his mate's pure white visage disappear from his vision, Inuyasha sank to his knees. Inutaisho came over to him, placing gentle hands on his youngest son's shoulders and resting his chin on the hanyou's head.

"I know this is hard. You've given him all that you can. Just let him go. He will come back to you," he comforted. "They always do."

The taiyoukai rubbed the furry ears that framed his son's head. "Come on. Let's go and do something else. Perhaps stargazing? I heard from my astrologer that a comet will be visible tonight."

Inuyasha didn't budge. _But Father, he refused me._

"It will be fun. I promise," the taiyoukai begged.

"Fine." Inuyasha stood up. Both dogs walked into the courtyard, hoping for the best.

xXx

(From the memories of Ryuukotsusei- about 1000 years in the past)

Ryuukotsusei ran his fingers through the moon silver hair. The smoothness and the softness of it never ceased to amaze him. It made his own violet curls feel so coarse under his hands. Never in a million years would he have believed his family, if they had told him in his boyhood that this snow driven beauty would be his mate. Nobility among youkai were not always the most attractive of beasts. After a life of battling to keep a title or a piece of land, many of the most powerful warlords were also the most ugly.

Inutaisho felt the appraising buzz of those emerald eyes. "What are you thinking about?"

The Lord of the West lay in bed with him, the slight bulge of a child showing through his skin, now that he wore no armor. The dragon placed his hand upon his mate's abdomen, feeling the tiny feet of the pup kicking up at him.

"That's a feisty one in there."

"Yeah. Probably gets it from you. Gives me hell every day."

"Well somebody's gotta do it when I'm not around."

Ryuukotsusei's tail twitched as Inutaisho ran his hands up the side of the dragon's ribs. Just before it reached his armpit, the ryuu youkai caught his mate's hand and kissed it.

"What shall we name the child? I always kind of liked the name Akihiko."

"No. Dragons never name their children anything like that." Ryuukotsusei crossed his arms over his chest.

"Inuyasha?" He asked hopefully.

"No way in hell. Did you seriously just pull that out of your ass?" The dragon seethed. Inutaisho gave his lover a pleading look, but his mate's bemused expression did not change.

The dog demon sighed. " Ichiro?"

The ryuu youkai shook his head. "Way too common."

"Mamoru?"

The dragon covered his eyes with his forearm. "What is it with you and things to protect?"

Inutaisho cringed and burrowed apologetically into the side of his mate. "Fine. Sorry. Takehiko?"

"Maybe." The dragon wavered his hand in only slight disapproval.

"Ungh! I give up. You're impossible."

The child kicked again. _Damn, this child has strength. I swear if he decides to tear out of my body like some creepy parasite…_

"Then what do you suggest for the little hellion." Inutaisho rested his head on the flat muscular chest, prompting Ryuukotsusei to cradle him in the crook of his elbow.

"What about Sesshomaru?" He mused.

The Lord of the West nearly choked on his own tongue. "Are you mad? That is just asking for a problem child."

"It is what my parents considered naming _me_ for a time." The dragon looked away, feigning disinterest

"Oh." The inu youkai hoped that his mate was not too offended. He tried to steer the topic to a different light. "Why did they change it?"

"My mother's older sister wanted to name her son Sesshomaru, and he was due first," he stated simply.

The dog furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Well then, why the hell would we want to double dip a name?"

"Well, she ended up having a girl. Her powers of maternal youkai observation leave much to be desired. I just felt bad for the child when it woke up to a world who had been expecting a bouncing baby boy. Can you imagine how many gifts would have to be exchange?"

"Ah, I see." Inutaisho thought about it a moment. "Well they could have still kept the name."

Ryuukotsusei buried his face in his hand once more. There were just some things that dog demons never seemed to understand. "No! Just no! Female dragons are fierce, but we just don't name them things like the killing perfection."

Inutaisho continued to dig himself deeper into his pit of verbal diarrhea. "Unless they dress to kill! I've met some sexy dragon ladies in my day."

"You! You….you are…" Ryuukotsusei was at a loss for words that described his mate accurately. "You're just incredibly hopeless."

Inutaisho smiled and kissed the dragon's white cheek. The ryuu demon pulled away only to grasp his lover's lips with his own. His long and thin forked tongue wrapped effortlessly around the dog's, effectively rendering it useless. He pulled his captive prize further into his mouth, causing Inutaisho to push forward and nip his lower lip slightly. The dragon grabbed a hold of his mate's length, which now threatened to make a tent out of their bed linens.

Inutaisho growled blissfully, enjoying the thumb that caressed over the tip of his cock in a slow but tantalizing circle. With a flick of his deep purple claw, Ryuukotsusei smiled as the dog jumped slightly when he hit the small ridge of flesh under the head of his cock. The dragon began to pump, using the sticky wetness that seeped from the top to let his hand glide over this love. Gently, he rotated his curled fingers and palm around the erection as he moved swiftly and decidedly up and down. The Lord of the West whined softly and pulled free from the kiss, electing instead to trace the dragon's nipples with a soft pink tongue.

Ripping the sheets from the mattress, Ryuukotsusei threw the cloth behind him, spreading Inutaisho's legs and then hoisting them over his shoulders. He gripped the butt cheeks that were now raised slightly from the bed and prized them apart, tracing the treasure between them just for a tease. The dragon roughly kissed and nibbled at the pure white inner thighs that sported beautiful purple stripes near their tops. He blew a gentle stream of air across the cock that pulsated gently, screaming out with the need for attention. Inutaisho whimpered with impatience, but didn't dare ask for more. He flexed his thigh muscles against the broad shoulders of his provider, trying to contain his yearning.

"I see," Ryuukotsusei remarked dryly. "I think my puppy wants release."

He flicked only the tip of his pronged tongue over the erection. The dog demon grasped at the mattress, puncturing holes in it unconsciously with his claws. Ryuukotsusei swirled his slick appendage down a little further, wrapping the ribbon of his tongue down the length like a carnal maypole. Still keeping his emerald eyes locked on the stare from his mate, he swallowed his mate fully, deep into the cavern between his lips. He constricted his mouth around his lover, allowing his best reptilian attribute to swivel around the smooth shaft while he scraped the head against the soft flesh at the back of his throat.

Inutaisho growled with pleasure, an earthy roar that only drove the dragon onward. Ryuukotsusei balanced the inu's weight solely on his shoulders, grasping at the dog's arms. He held them with a single hand, so that they crossed at the wrist. Inutaisho's back arched, as he pulled the inu youkai's arms back towards him, the tension of restraint only making him harder. Returning the other hand to his mate's rear, he forced a single finger into his anal passage, rubbing and pressing down upon that single firm spot. He ministrated faster and more firmly around Inutaisho's manhood, sucking and licking in a pleasure driven tempo.

With his mouth full of his mate's cock, Ryuukotsusei began to speak, letting his deep voice massage the erection with the words that they both understood no matter the context.

"Inutaisho, I love you."

Inutaisho cried out, screaming Ryuukotsusei's name as loud as he could, feeling the release of his body flowing into the waiting throat. It made his entire body tremble violently as each new gush of his life force left his being. The dragon laughed at his mate's state. There was just something that rose within him and made him feel proud every single time he rendered the supreme, high, mighty, and powerful Lord of the West completely incapacitated with just a few tricks of the mouth.

Gently, he laid the dog demon down upon the bed, making sure to _accidentally_ brush the very sensitive genitalia of his love. Inutaisho cringed slightly, but quickly hid it with an adoring smile.

"Ryuu, you never cease to amaze me. Even after all this time." He wrapped his arms around the dragon and pulled him into bed beside him.

"Believe me, I know," the ryuu youkai joked.

Looking down at his mate's belly, Ryuukotsusei traced the slightly visible orb of the developing pup. It was a restless beast; both parents could see the child's flailing movements in the womb. One particularly harsh kick made the inu taiyoukai curse with discomfort.

"Damn it! If this damn 'perfect circle of death' kicks me in the ribs one more time, I am going to start charging the little bugger rent!"

The dragon couldn't help but laugh. He laid his head across his mate's abdomen and began to hum a lullaby, letting the vibrations from his throat bathe the infant in sound.

_Mori no fukuro ga iimashita _

_watashi wa mori no mihari yaku_

_Kowai okami, kitsune nado  
kosasenai kara ne ne shina _

Inutaisho was stunned at the new usage of the dragon's voice. Soon the unborn inu pup was pacified, but the ryuu youkai still lay with his head across his mate, ear flush against his unborn son. He wondered what their child would look like. No children had ever been born in his mate's line that did not have the long silver hair or the eyes of liquid sunshine, but then again, the noble inu line had never been bred with the stock of the northern dragons. Both he and his mate had purple detailing on their faces, so the only real mystery was to the pattern of demon markings that the child would carry.

_The child will be inu taiyoukai, but perhaps I can give him something of my own. Perhaps he may get my voice. I would be satisfied with that._

He was returned to the real world at the sound of Inutaisho's speech that was tinged with worry. "Ryuu, I have been thinking for a while on this, but I cannot come up with anything. This is the first mating between two males in the history of my lands. What should we have the pup call us?"

Ryuukotsusei bowed his head. "Well, in my family, my uncle had children from a mating with one of the tiger lords of the east. They are all dead now, but I was able to meet his young son before the war began on his territories." He breathed deeply. "Because of this, I want the child to call you father."

Inutaisho sat up straight in the bed. "But you are more the father than I, are you sure?"

"Yes." The dog demon knew better than to question, even though he felt a little bit uncomfortable with the decision.

"Then what the hell would that leave you to be called?" He questioned. "Surely not mother."

"No." He shook his head. "Sire. I wish to be called his sire. It makes perfect sense; you are his father and I am his sire. It may be a little archaic, but we dragons have used it forever."

"Sire." Inutaisho pondered the feel of the word on his tongue. "That's a nice name."

"Yes, I suppose it is." Ryuukotsusei began to absent mindedly stroke his mate's hair. "I suppose it is."

xXx

(back in the time of the present)

_Kami, this better work._

Sesshomaru searched the area for signs of life. Finding none, he pushed open the door to the Lord's chambers. There was his savior, right where it had been left before. He padded over the spot where the blood had been earlier. Not a trace of scarlet had found its mark. Sesshomaru was a little disappointed that there was no stain on the wooden floor as a remembrance of the events that had happened there.

_I want the fang._

The taiyoukai stooped to pick up Tetsuseiga, but stopped. The electric smell of his magically burnt flesh still echoed in his brain, in some ways alarming him more than the pain of the touch itself. Sword and demon continued the one-sided staring contest, only to end when Sesshomaru felt his anger dwarfed by personal embarrassment. Cursing the barrier on the sword, he turned to the rack of his father's blades. The very top rack, where Tetsuseiga should have rested, was empty and the two other katanas lay side by side in their respective holders. With appraising eyes, the dog demon stared at the two swords, not entirely daring to touch another after his encounter with Tetsuseiga. He traced a finger over Sou'unga's sheath.

_Sou'unga could never work. It is made from the fang of a dragon from hell._

That left one other option for him. He closed his eyes and braced himself for pain as he reached out his clawed hand.

Sesshomaru picked up the Tenseiga from its holder, the sword that could save a hundred lives in one sweep. Slowly he opened one eye, just to make sure he was really holding it. He drew the blade just a few inches from the sheath, looking at himself mirrored within it.

_Tenseiga, you are a useless sword in battle. However, you are still made from my father's fang. Perhaps you shall be useful to me, just this once._

Opening up a window and jumping through it, he escaped into the forest, the sword still grasped in his hand. Sesshomaru thrust it into his obi as he ran. It was strange to him how the handle bumped against his side with every step.

In fact, he didn't even have a sword of his own, though he had trained for years. He had begged his father to let him make one out of his own fangs when he was younger, but Inutaisho had always insisted that he wait a few thousand years before even considering making a sword from his own teeth. Something to do with the gathering of strength, in both body and youki. He hoped that one day he would inherit either the Tetsuseiga or the Sou'unga, if not all three swords.

Now that he was out of sight from the fortress, Sesshomaru concentrated his energy for flight. The cool breeze of the night air whooshed pleasantly by the sides of his face and dragged its fingers through his long hair so that it splayed back behind him. He loved how small the world became below his feet and how wide the horizon spread under him. Following the meandering path of a river, he reached the point where the water flowed into the sea.

This was a strange area of the country, one that he had never believed until he had been taken here as a child. The fractured cliffs and mountains were shrouded in the mist that was seeped in from the nearby ocean every night. Nimbly, Sesshomaru landed and hopped from rock to rock.

_This will work._

He found himself standing directly in front of Ryuukotsusei. Even in his inu form, Sesshomaru could only hope to reach the height of the dragon's rampantly posed claws. It had been a while since he had the strength to visit this place. When Inuyasha was younger and Izayoi was alive, he would flee the castle to stand at the dragon's feet or climb into the center of the dragon's coiling body so that he could experience a hug one last time.

Sesshomaru used to come here often just to think; the crashing of the distant sea always relaxed him. He knew Inutaisho came here too, he could smell his past presence and the salt of his tears that he shed on the ground. The day that Izayoi was buried in the ground forever, he had hidden himself behind one of the rocks and watched his father grieving, waiting for him to remove the claw that was thrust so awkwardly above the dragon's heart. Still, he did not remove it.

Inutaisho had the ability of sealing. Whether or not Sesshomaru would have that same power, would be many centuries in coming. At the earliest, he would at least have to have lived a full millennium to garner enough spiritual energy to even try to discover if he had inherited the Western Lord's power. Sesshomaru wasn't sure if he wanted the ability or not. He despised tepid solutions to problems. All questions had a right and a wrong answer did they not? Life and death were the two choices. Eternal slumber was an embarrassment to the proud warrior that stood impaled against the cliff.

The taiyoukai had been planning how to reanimate his _real_ father for quite some time now. His own poison acid wouldn't be able to dissolve away the claw and besides, he knew that Ryuukotsusei could only be revived by the one who sealed him. Sesshomaru could never get the dog lord to unseal his mate, but perhaps he could use a part of him.

Decisively, the youkai drew the Tenseiga and pointed it at the frozen dragon. Focusing his mind into the tip of the blade, he felt the strength of his father flow through the fang. Sesshomaru plunged the sword into the same wound left by the protrusion, the blade screeching as it scraped along the side of the claw.

_Please let the claw recognize the fang._

Sesshomaru planted his feet on either side of the puncture wound, so that he was held perpendicular to the cliff. The claw punctured in deep, as deep as the blade was long. The youkai sawed around the girth of the claw, tracing the edge, separating it from the dragon skin that had scabbed up around it. Sesshomaru panted at the hard labor and leaned into the claw for more support.

Cerulean light flashed in a circle around the puncture and began to smoke. The daiyoukai jumped down off of the dragon as the claw began to disintegrate into a plume of white, swirling away into the light wind. Suddenly it fractured into a million fragments, each exploding outward and showering the ground below in tiny shards. After the rain of claw stopped, Sesshomaru dared to gaze up from behind his shielding arm.

The earth made a sick lurching sound as the dragon removed his body that had, over time, become one with the cliff. It twisted its spine to stretch the muscles that had been forsaken for centuries, the vertebrae cracking with each slight movement. His eyes flickered open, both those on his head and those in his mask, desperately searching for the one who had sealed him, seeking blood. However, there was no giant feather-furred dog to be found.

"Inutaisho! Show yourself, you cowardly dog," he growled, his voice rasping with disuse.

"He is not here," Sesshomaru said dryly. "I am the one who released you from this embarrassment. I am the only one who truly cares about you."

Ryuukotsusei smelled the essence of a dog demon. The speaker was true. There was no Inutaisho, except for his remnants from past visits. Could he really have been freed by…?

The coiling dragon condensed himself, pulling his whirlwind of transformation close to him. His old human form had not been used in so many years; it felt awkward to his youki which fought to flee the lesser form. Finally, he stood in his human battle armor, face to face with what could have been the brother of his mate.

_How many years have passed? Is this really who I think it is?_

"Sire."

Ryuukotsusei was dumbfounded by the sterling inu youkai who stood before him, holding out his mate's sword. When he had been sealed, his son had just recently reached his teenage threshold. He began to reach out to the stoic figure, but the fire in Sesshomaru's eyes retarded the gesture. The demon in the white kimono was no longer a child.

"Sesshomaru."

"Yes?"

"How long have I been sealed here?"

"Over 200 years"

The dragon winced slightly. His gauntlets clattered against sword as he jumped involuntarily. He might have understood if he had been sealed for the length of that woman's mortal life, but 200 years.

_That long, my love? Did you make that stupid wench immortal? If she is, I will slaughter you both._

Ryuukotsusei stared back at Sesshomaru, who remained impassive as he observed his sire's contemplation.

"Thank you for my freedom. There is something I must do. Surely you understand," the dragon remarked curtly.

Sesshomaru nodded. "Go to him. No doubt he will be _surprised_ to see you."

The ryuu youkai, summoning his own purple youki entered flight. Sesshomaru watched it disappear over the cliffs and forests beyond. Then, he called upon his own spirit for transportation. This was something he had to watch.

* * *

_A/N- I just wanted to define a couple of things for you guys from the RyuuK memory. The names used in their banter have these meanings:_

_Akihiko – bright shining prince_

_Inuyasha – dog forest spirit_

_Ichiro – first son_

_Mamoru – protect_

_Takehiko – soldier prince_

_Dealing with the name Sesshomaru: there are so many translations for it. Therefore I used my two personal favorites…'the killing perfection' (I believe there is a Sesshy shrine website with that name), and 'the perfect circle of death', but I also know that it may be translated as 'the destruction of the circle of life' as well. So there you have it. Some of the inside jokes I make with myself_

_And this is the translation for the song that RyuuK sings to Sesshomaru when he is in utero: _

_The forest owl said  
I am the guardian of the forest_

_fearsome wolves and kitsune and the like  
won't be allowed to come near, so sleep, sleep _

_I used to spend a lot of my time in choral training when I was elementary/middleschoolish and it was one of my favorite songs that I had to sing for that, as well as being a Japanese lullaby._

_Next update includes some very pretty declarations of brotherly love. I am soooo excited to start writing it._

_Thanks a lot for the support! Reviews are appreciated greatly. _


	9. Star Crossed

_Quick Note: I have just had surgery, so I have been a little out of it of late. A stupid evil cyst just decided to exist in my back, and then I lost the ability to sit because it hurt so bad. Soooo, that has affected my writing speed. And my beta's sick. Get better Dem!_

_Ok. So also in this story, I mention the Japanese holiday of Chugen. In this holiday, generally gifts are given by people to members of their families, acquaintances, and especially to those higher than them, such as their boss. Usually the gifts are everyday objects, but sometimes not. Gift giving is a very integral part of Japanese culture. Keep this in mind._

_Synopsis: Stargazing (yes! Russanya did research actual Japanese star myths), a different take on Izayoi, and what you all have been waiting for…the err star-crossed Ryuunion of two very special lovers (ha! I made a joke) and hopefully a very satisfying event at the end._

_Beta: The absolutely amazing Demitria Miriam, to whom I am eternally indebted and worship._

_Disclaimer: I do not profit off of InuYasha in any way. But if Rumiko makes money off of this story somehow…she better give me a cut._

* * *

Inutaisho and his son stared into the sky, searching the heavens for anything that resembled a comet. The Lord of the West was puzzled at the midnight velvet carpet that was empty of anything but fixed, twinkling, happy stars. He swore that they were taunting him.

_Good omen for the dinner, my ass. Damn astrologer. I thought he said tonight was the comet. Or wait…did he say that yesterday?_ Inutaisho thought, somewhat puzzled.

Inuyasha stared up at the stars, the pain in his heart evident upon his face. Inutaisho couldn't help but feel slightly responsible for it, and it burned in the pit of his stomach. What could he do to cheer him up?

"Have I ever told you the story about the emperor Tentei, his daughter Orihime, and her suitor Kengyuu?"

_Of course I haven't_. Inutaisho thought. _For the two hundred years I have lived with him in my household, I never gazed at the stars with him. Only with Izayoi after a night of love. And before that only with…_ Inutaisho didn't really want to think about that any further. He just wanted his son to be happy.

Inuyasha dragged his toes through the sandy ground below their feet, making swirling circles in the dirt. "No," he said, not bothering to look up.

"This was a story your mother told me. It's something that humans tell one another to make sense of the heavens they do not understand themselves. They have a great number of myths to explain the stars in the sky." Inutaisho glanced over nervously, seeing if his little hint of the story's origin had roused Inuyasha at all.

The hanyou lifted his eyes a little. "That's strange. Don't they know that stars have spirits of their own?"

Inutaisho rolled his eyes. "Yes, some do, but that doesn't make a good story now does it?"

The dog lord pulled his son close to him and pointed into the sky. He closed one eye so that he had the same vantage point as the disgruntled hanyou.

"Ok, now imagine that star right there is Tentei and that milky band of stars is the river." Inutaisho gestured to the Milky Way and a bright star off to the side. "The brighter one next to Tentei is Orihime, and the one across the river with the slight reddish cast is Kengyuu."

Inuyasha had to narrow his eyes to see the stars a little more clearly.

"One day, the emperor's daughter, Orihime, was sitting beside the river of heaven. She had been weaving because her father, the emperor, loved the beautiful clothes that she made. One day, she was very sad because she realized that she had been so busy that she didn't have time to fall in love. Her father, Tentei, the ruler of the heavens, felt sorry for her and arranged a marriage with Kengyuu, who lived across the river. Their marriage was one of sweetness and happiness from the start; and everyday thereafter they grew happier and happier."

Inuyasha smiled slightly. "An optimistic ending. I see what you are trying to do. Don't push it."

"I'm not finished yet." The older inu folded his arms across his chest.

"But you sounded done," Inuyasha whined.

"Quiet." Inutaisho cleared his throat and began to fiddle with his hair tie, making sure it was perfectly level. "Moving on. Soon her father Tentei became very angry, because in spending so much time in her happy marriage, Orihime was neglecting her weaving. Tentei decided to separate the couple, so he placed them back in their original places, separated by the river. On only one night of the year would he allow them to meet, the 7th day of the 7th month."

"Oh ok. Are you trying to tell me something?" The hanyou felt his mood rise a little bit as he made a joke. He raised an eyebrow at his father, who looked slightly green.

"No. This is just how the story goes," he snapped. "Are you going to listen or not?" Inutaisho was a little surprised at his reaction, but he had so little control.

Inuyasha noticed the surprise that passed through his father's eyes "Fine. Carry on, my lord," he said, bowing ever so slightly. _Touché. _

Relieved, the inu youkai returned his hand to his son's shoulder and traced a path in the sky. "Every year on that day, from the mouth of the river, the boat man, you know, the moon, comes to ferry Orihime over to her beloved Kengyuu. But, if Orihime has not done her weaving to the best of her skills and ability, Tentei may make it rain. When it rains, the boatman will not come because the river is flooded.

The hanyou flattened his ears to his head. "I suppose I was wrong. That's a depressing story, only being able to see one another once a year and maybe not even. I mean, what if it rains everyday that she is supposed to go?"

Inutaisho shushed him. "I'm not done yet." The dog lord coughed exaggeratedly to fake his annoyance. "_However_, in such a case, a group of magpies may still fly to the river of stars to make a bridge for Orihime to cross. And that night is what makes their lives worthwhile."

"Oh." Inuyasha studied the skies harder. The seventh day of the seventh month was close. Sometime next week.

He suddenly remembered something. "And what about that comet?"

"Comet? Did I say something about a comet?" Inutaisho bluffed, forcing the most baffled expression on his face. _Shit! I've been found out! But I could have sworn it was today. _

Inuyasha shrugged. "Ah, doesn't matter."

Inutaisho relaxed. _Thank kami._

The older inu suddenly felt a little tightness in his heart, like he had just remembered something he had forgotten to do long ago. _Strange. _He leaned against a stone pillar, suddenly a little bit exhausted.

"Are you alright?" Inuyasha asked.

"Yeah. I must just be getting old or something. I think I need to turn in for the night." Inutaisho rubbed his eyes and forehead.

Inuyasha stared at him expectantly as his father squinted, thinking.

_What the hell has come over me all of the sudden? I feel like I'm forgetting something._

"You should come in, too. He'll be back, don't worry."

His youngest son stood with his back turned to him, nose to the stars. "I don't think I'm ready to go just yet. The night feels good on my skin for some reason."

Inutaisho sighed. "I'll stay here for a little longer. Nobody likes to be alone." Sliding his back down the pillar, he sat on the ground and rested his forehead against his knees.

The tugging feeling became a warming sensation, reminding him of a million different memories of his childhood. Arms circling around him, the aroma of a fresh meal, and the haze of a lazy afternoon all popped into his head.

_I really should go to sleep somewhere else besides here, like my bed. This is too weird._ Inutaisho was hurtling through the liquid of time, and he could feel it submersing him head first.

_Keep yourself together! _He shook his head and opened his mouth to speak to Inuyasha, but the hanyou had already turned to face him.

"Father, is that the comet that we were supposed to see? It's not in the same quadrant of the sky, and it's kind of a strange color. Is that supposed to be an _extra special_ omen or something?" Inuyasha questioned.

Inutaisho raised a flat hand to his eyebrows, searching the inky heavens. There was something shooting through the skies…but it was not a star.

"Inuyasha. It is not safe for you to be here. Go inside. Grab the Tetsuseiga and hide. Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself."

"What the hell are you talking about!" Inuyasha growled.

_He wants me to wield his sword and take cover. Why the fuck is he so scared?_ "It's not like the comet has a personal vendetta against you or anything. You said it was a _good_ omen"

"That's not a comet." Inutaisho whispered. _That heart deep pull. How could I have been so stupid? But more importantly, how is this possible? He shouldn't be here. _He sniffed the air, now starting to smell the scent of blood lust. His thoughts then wandered to his other child. _Where's Sesshomaru?_

Inuyasha was determined. "Well than what else is it? Sure, it might be purple, but…Father?"

Inutaisho's eyes began to glow red. Fighting his youki, he suppressed the surge of power, his fists clenched. Inuyasha had never seen the daiyoukai loose control of his own youki in public. In fact, he had only seen it happen once to Sesshomaru, and that was a _very_ long time ago.

_I have to get my swords. If he means anything malicious at all, I must have my swords_, came a racing thought to Inutaisho.

The streak of the comet was beginning to grow larger, losing its trail of fast energy, becoming more focused and spherical. He clutched a hand to his chest.

_He is trying so hard to locate me, I can feel him._ He could feel so much in his heart deep tie. Panic. Anger. Confusion. Jealousy. Urgency. But he did feel another emotion flowing into him, and at a rate he had missed for such a long time.

He could feel love.

"That, my son," Inutaisho panted, "is Ryuukotsusei."

The hanyou froze. "But isn't he—"

Inutaisho shook his head. "Not anymore, apparently." The dog lord laughed, throwing back his head.

Feeling so euphoric and yet scared shitless at the same time, his face resorted to his default expression, grinning like an idiot. _I am ready Ryuu! I will not ignore this any longer._

Inuyasha had never experienced anything like this before. Inutaisho had never really been on the shy side, but the demon beside him had a new found strength, an inner fortitude that he never knew his father had. To his surprise, Inutaisho threw off his haori, the planes of his chest electrified in the moonlight. In stark contrast with the ivory skin, his mark, usually hidden by the thinnest silk, screamed out in scarlet. The dog lord rested his hands against the tips of his hip bones that just barely peeked out from the band of his hakama.

When he had sealed Ryuukotsusei so long ago, half of his own power had been frozen away, never to be touched; it was the energy that kept the dragon alive on the other side of the claw. This was no time to get cocky; he knew that his mate was fueled by the same fusion of power. Their fate was sealed in the instant they were marked.

"Inuyasha." Inutaisho let the red of his youki bleed into his eyes again, this time willfully. "My mate has returned, and this is his home."

Inuyasha felt his muscles seize up with adrenaline. His body was on fire. He looked over to his father one last time, but the gaze was not returned.

"I suggest you run."

xXx

_(From the memory of Izayoi- approximately 150 years into the past)_

"Oh!" The elegant woman raised a hand to her mouth. "Honey, let me help you with that."

The hanyou child was happily plunging his clawed finger into the pot of fresh honey Izayoi had just collected. Undeterred by the gooey mess that oozed from finger to finger, Inuyasha enjoyed the snack while he tried to lick himself clean. Izayoi pried the pot from her son's hands and replaced the cap that had slid from the top. Knowing that it would only slip off again when the child would run to give the gift to its receiver, she tied a ribbon around the container.

She had her own captive hive that she kept in a small barn near a grove of plum trees. The nectar from the lord's orchard made the honey flavored with sweetness she had never known living among her race. She had no fear of reaching in to remove the food. Had her father seen her do such a thing, being of such noble birth, he would have chided her for threatening the unblemished skin of her hands and wrists. The favor of the Lord of the West clung to her human flesh, scattering the hardworking insects to either side of her intruding fingers.

Inuyasha wandered over to the fountain and cleaned the rest of the mess from his hands. Though he was half human, his demon blood decelerated his aging like nothing Izayoi had ever known. Since the Lord of the West had taken her into his household, she had learned so much about youkai, things that had never even occurred to her before.

When she had first met the daiyoukai in the forest, by looks alone, she judged him to be a young man of about twenty five years. It wasn't until one day that he made a comment about how he hadn't had "so much fun in centuries" that she got a glimpse into his true age. Though Inutaisho never would tell her how old he really was, she was able to infer from jibes made to him by Sesshomaru that he had walked the earth for at least two millennia. It really shouldn't have surprised her that her hanyou son now looked only eight years old after a full 50 years of life.

It saddened her that she would never see Inuyasha reach his own adult hanyou threshold. If she was lucky, she might see him reach his teens. However, she was glad that nobody in her immortal adopted family would watch her mortal body wither and die. Her lover had seen to it that she receive a potion of foul smelling demon herbs every day that would make her appear young, so that she would not feel so inadequate.

In a way it was almost worse. She felt her body aging even if she didn't see it in the mirror. One day, when it was her time, she would simply leave her eternally young body behind, and that would be that. Inutaisho hardly kept track of time, and why would he have to? He seemed to just cavort about the lands like an overgrown pup; she seriously doubted that he even knew that she had passed her seventieth birthday. However, she always got the sneaking suspicion that his secretive, older son counted every day she was alive.

Izayoi never regretted mortal life. Sometimes, she was just so tired.

Sesshomaru. Izayoi had never really understood her son's full demon, half brother. Come to think of it, she had never seen the pale inu smile. In the court, on the lands, behind the scenes, he was always there; he was always watching. She had tried to act kindly to him, offering him gifts and other polite gestures, but he always brushed them aside.

No matter what she gave him, he always turned it away. The more he shunned her, the more she was intrigued by him. If only she could get him to talk to her. She could feel the pain and darkness that he held close; she always wondered if it was the loss of his mother at an early age. If only he would let her, she would have gladly tried to heal him.

Izayoi had fallen in love with humans. Her original betrothed had been a rather crooked general, who accepted bribes from anyone. She had fallen in love with a demon. He was the most fearsome creature she had ever known and had watched him decimate with his own hands the home and family that had raised her. Even after she had seen the blood of her relatives dripping from his sword, she still followed him to his castle, cradling his child in her arms. She had fallen in love with her own hanyou son. This beast would never truly be accepted by demon or human society. Only the luck of his father's noble status would protect his future.

Izayoi could love anyone. Why would Sesshomaru be any different?

Inutaisho never answered her questions about his eldest son.

'_If he wants you to know, he will tell you. I do not pretend to know everything about my own sons. There are some things he would never dream of telling me,'_ he would say.

A familiar voice disturbed her from her thoughts. "Mom, do you think he would like this?"

"What's that, love?" Izayoi leaned down so that she was at the boy's level. Inuyasha held out an obi. The length was wrapped several times around his hands so that he could hold it.

"This one. I got it from a shop in the village," he beamed.

"I thought your father and I told you not to go to the village anymore without one of us with you. It's dangerous for a child to go all alone," Izayoi scolded gently.

"Oh don't worry, nobody saw me. I just saw it in the shop and I grabbed it and ran."

_Oh boy._

"Inuyasha, things like this, especially fine things like this cost money. Somebody saw you in the shop when you paid, surely."

The pup's eyes searched upwards as he began to giggle. "I knew I forgot to do _something_."

_Not much I can do about it now._ Izayoi smiled and pressed her hands together. "Well, you can give it to him, and if he doesn't like it we will _both_ go back to the village and return it _together_. If he does like it, I will just make a donation to the shopkeeper."

"Hai!"

The obi was a blend of beautifully dyed silk. It was close in color to the one he already wore, being gold and striped with blue. However, at the ends, it was a little fancier than the older inu's sash, having a motif that looked slightly like the waves reaching up to the golden sky left by the setting sun. Izayoi did know that Sesshomaru hated change, and this obi was so close to the pattern of his old one, he just might appreciate the thoughtfulness behind the gift.

Today was the beginning of Chugen, and although the youkai never celebrated the holiday, it was one little human tradition that she held on to. As she always gave gifts to those older than her, here that was practically _everyone_. She had originally hoped to use it to mend her at best strained relationship with the Lord's eldest son. Sesshomaru refused anything from her, but to her surprise, he welcomed the gifts from Inuyasha.

"Let me wrap that up for you." Izayoi folded the obi carefully and placed it in the paper she had brought out with her. After folding and tying her intricate masterpiece, she handed it to Inuyasha.

"I'm going to give it to him now."

"Ok."

Izayoi sighed as he disappeared into the forest. His brother was quite an enigma. Sesshomaru never showed any interest in the little hanyou pup that was just so fascinated by him. It was a wonder that Inuyasha continued to follow his brother around. The most the future lord ever said to the hanyou was an insult.

_What do my son and I both see in him? _

One day, Inuyasha would hit his teens, and the sweetness of this age would leave him. No doubt when Izayoi was dead, the bottom of Sesshomaru's pent up anger and sarcasm would fall out, sweeping the two brothers up in a rivalry neither of them needed. These were the good days now.

Izayoi wandered out to the riverside, curious to watch the exchange between the inu brothers. She knew Sesshomaru would sense her, but she didn't care. She continued journeying in the direction of her son.

In an open stretch of forest she stopped to rest. Seventy years on the inside kept her from moving too fast. After a brief pause she stepped onto a patch of slightly unstable ground. The earth gave way to reveal a hunter's pit, placed there by some of Inutaisho's soldiers in the hope of catching some meat.

The fall did not hurt her as much as it shocked her. After checking over herself, she found no injuries, save a bruise on her leg where she slid down the side of the ditch. There was nothing else she could do but wait for somebody stronger than her little mortal self to save her.

"Inuyasha!" She called out. "Inuyasha, can you get your father?"

No answer.

"Inutaisho?" She tried again.

Still no answer.

The sun set slowly, hidden by the forest canopy above. Izayoi tried to claw up the pit in vain, but the most she succeeded to do was to fill her fingernails and shoes with grime. A soft mist of rain now coated the earth around her, making her hair stick to her face and puddles of mud to form at her feet.

Her voice rasped from yelling names, it burned the back of her throat just to breathe. As the stars in the sky appeared overhead, the defeated woman sank to her knees in the filth.

_Where are you, my dearest?_

Everything faded into black as she surrendered to sleep.

In her dreams, a pair of hands lifted her out from the darkness. They wrapped so gently and carefully around her waist, she almost didn't realize that she had woken up. Only seeing a bit of white kimono and the long clawed fingers, Izayoi was slightly unsure of her rescuer's identity, but whoever it was could jump over ten feet vertically. This feat was normal; she lived with demons now. When the silver white hair brushed her face, there was only one possibility.

"Oh, dearest. Thank you for coming," she whispered. _How did he find me? Did he track my scent when I didn't return to his bedside tonight?_

A bitter voice answered her. "Never call me that again."

Izayoi's eyes widened. "Gomen nasai. I did not realize it was you."

"I only did this because_ he_ wanted me to."

_Of course. _Izayoi smiled. "Where is your father?"

"He left in the morning to visit a neighboring province," Sesshomaru said.

"I see," Izayoi nodded.

A haggard looking Inuyasha came tearing out from the cover of trees. He saw his brother had flown off somewhere, but it had taken a while for his tiny body to catch up with the inu daiyoukai. To his surprise, Sesshomaru held his mother's waist in his hands, and she stared into the demon's frigid eyes with a dazed expression.

Before the inu pup reached the pair, Sesshomaru spoke to Izayoi. "This is yours. I know it is."

Izayoi blushed. She staggered away from the fair-skinned demon when he let go of her, her balance and grace flowing into her slowly.

"I cannot accept this from you." He held out the pot of honey. At Inuyasha's arrival, he handed the container to his young half brother.

"Thank you." The words were not what she wished to say, but she couldn't think of better.

The youkai said nothing in return. She had come to expect this, although it never lessened the emptiness inside of her heart when the words ceased to come. Turning away from Izayoi, Sesshomaru began to march slowly to the castle.

As she watched him disappear into the distance, she noticed something unusual. Expertly tied and fluttering against the sides of his hakama in the wind, he wore a different obi. Similar, yes, but not the same.

Inuyasha tugged at her muddy sleeve. "Mama, I didn't know where you were. I was so scared. I didn't know what to do."

Izayoi thought back to Sesshomaru's words.

'_I only did this because he wanted me to.'_

Inutaisho couldn't have asked such a favor of his eldest. He had already left on business. That could only mean…

Her son babbled on. "He wouldn't take the honey. And he hates the obi but he never gave it back. He's such a meanie."

"I know sweetie." Izayoi knelt down to her son's level, enveloping the pup in her arms. Cradling his weight close to her heart, she lifted him up. Either Inuyasha was really starting to get heavy, or her age was starting to really add lead to her bones.

Something made her smile as she thought about the solitary youkai, hiding from her son as he redressed with the obi that he _hated_ so much. "I know."

_(End of Izayoi's memory)_

xXx

Ryuukotsusei pressed his eyelids together tightly, focusing on the invisible red string that bound him and his mate together. Inutaisho was not far from here; in fact Ryuukotsusei could determine the exact location of the Western Lord. He was in the courtyard, standing above the stairway that led down into the garden, closest to the dining hall. The dragon smiled. He was good and he knew it.

Inutaisho had never been quite so good at tracking, but early in their pairing, they would play hide and go seek, trying to hide themselves from the pull of their own marks. The ryuu youkai had only evaded his lover once, and even that only lasted for five minutes. The dog had a specialty of his own; he could sense emotions through the bind of the mark. Ryuukotsusei never pretended to be jealous of that empathic ability though. As much as he loved his mate, sometimes he wondered if sharing a true empathic link would have driven him mad. The violent kaleidoscopic storms that were the moods of Inutaisho were an experience of their own, if only to be seen.

However, as detached as the dragon was, he could feel the raw attraction, love, and longing that poured from the inu youkai. _He feels me. He wants me. He needs me._

No, this wouldn't make Ryuukotsusei forget about the past two centuries he had spent pinned to the cliff of Musashi. It wouldn't make him entirely forgive his clandestine unions with that mortal whore. It most certainly wouldn't make him forgive the fact that in some castle, a long time ago, that his mate rescued a child from death that shared half of the lord's blood and none of the dragon's.

_You will pay, Inutaisho, but if you play it right, we both just might get what we want._

The castle was visible in the distance. _Just like I thought. Two hundred years have not dulled my sense of tracking._ The dragon slowed his flight and floated more leisurely through the air. His mate wasn't running anywhere; he could take his time for a dramatic entrance.

Inutaisho stood transfixed by the violet haired demon that was enshrouded by his purple cocoon of electricity. _Is this Ryuukotsusei? My Ryuukotsusei? _The demon inside the sphere had the same white face as unreadable as a mask, the same spear ended tail, and the same emerald toned eyes that calculated every thought behind the rice paper thin façade of the inu youkai.

The dragon descended upon the ground, his youki sizzling against the earth before it rejoined his body. Neither demon released eye contact. With sure and graceful footsteps, he approached Inutaisho, reaching out his right hand. Inutaisho closed his eyes as the palm slid gently across the hollow of his cheek.

Ryuukotsusei lifted the inu's chin with an index finger. "200 years, my love." Inutaisho yelped slightly as the dragon's other hand landed upon his bare abdominals. The dragon smirked. "And I can see it was nearly 200 years without sex. I didn't know you had it in you. I am impressed. Guilt does wonders."

_Why are you being such a tease? _The Lord of the West narrowed his eyes. _I feel your anger. Say what is really on your mind._

"Let me ask you something. Was whatever that kept you from releasing me and finishing our business worth it? Or was this something else, a love you were willing to die for?" The dragon sneered. "Have you given that stupid mortal an immortality potion? Do you transfuse her with your own blood to keep her alive?"

"Izayoi died 150 years ago. Let the dead rest." Inutaisho barked. Ryuukotsusei was being far too nice. The bland smile plastered on his mate's face frightened him much more than the fight they had before the dragon was sealed.

"Ah." The ryuu youkai smiled politely. "And now that 200 years have passed, I am sure you have disposed of that unsightly hanyou child. 100 years of age is usually the time by which a hanyou is capable of living on its own."

Inutaisho gulped. "Ummm…Ryuu? There's some things we should probably sit down and talk about. You know how I have a hard time letting go of some things—"

Ryuukotsusei interrupted. "I have been your mate for a full millennium. I understand your idiosyncrasies. I am sure you told yourself many times that you were going to release me tomorrow, but then tomorrow just grew into centuries. I could smell your presence and sense the sorrow in the tears that you shed on the ground."

Inutaisho would not lie about that. As much pain as he had shouldered by keeping Ryuukotsusei captive, the procrastinator in him always had the last laugh.

The ryuu youkai was dizzyingly close. The gentle hiss behind his voice in his breathing was now clear to the dog lord. It reminded him of the sounds that the demon made long ago as he lay next to him in bed, sound asleep.

Ryuukotsusei continued. "Am I disappointed in you, as my mate? Yes. Am I angry with you? No."

The dragon drew Inutaisho into his arms, tracing the inu youkai's lip with his forked tongue. Unable to hold back any longer, Inutaisho took the lead, hungrily grasping at the dragon with his lips. The chill of Ryuukotsusei's armor pressing against his bare skin only spurned him on to hunt for more warmth in the mouth of the dragon.

"Let's go inside. I can tell you have suffered enough. Do you think our bed will recognize me?" The dragon grabbed a hold of Inutaisho's ponytail and tugged it in the direction of the castle.

"Ryuu, there are some things that we really need to talk about, before we continue." _I have to tell him about Inuyasha. I can't just keep this from him, and in the mean time, I wouldn't have anywhere to hide the hanyou in question._

The dragon rolled his eyes. "What is it then?"

_Where to start…_thought Inutaisho.

A slight rustling of the bushes made Ryuukotsusei scan the area immediately. He flicked out his tongue, testing the air. Withdrawing it back into his mouth, he studied the sample in his mind, analyzing his palate like a wine taster.

Inutaisho blushed. _Oh, shit._

The dragon turned back to face his mate. "Inutaisho, correct me if I am wrong, but do I smell a hanyou in our midst?"

"Well I said we have to talk…"

The dragon's eyes blazed red and he raked his claws over the dog's bare chest. Inutaisho winced. He had never stopped taking his daily regiment of antidote, but it didn't mean that the poison was painless. Ryuukotsusei called upon his youki to release his true form. In a panic, Inutaisho joined his mate in his own unfettered form, pouncing upon the narrow snakelike body, trying to pin the dragon to the ground.

Ryuukotsusei reared up, attempting to shake off the dog's giant body. "You have kept this embarrassment at your side, rather than me. Things will be even between you and I soon, mate. Surely you understand."

"You will not hurt him. Your battle is with me. Remember, I am the unfaithful one." Inutaisho's voice cracked on the word unfaithful.

"Yes. Which is naturally why you must pay for your mistake." The dragon finally broke free from the barrel hold Inutaisho had made over his body. "Even if you are the Lord of the West, you _don't_ get to do whatever you want. I am sure that by now I am a laughing stock among my kind," he added.

"There are no more of your kind," Inutaisho barked.

"What?" _What the hell happened in 200 years?_

"You heard me. There was war on your ancestral lands, and the northern ryuu clan was slaughtered."

Ryuukotsusei froze. "Why didn't you help them? With your political power, you could have swayed so many powerful allies. Are you truly that selfish?"

"No. Your family is so fucking _prideful_ that they didn't even _ask,_ let alone did I know about it until it was too late."

Ryuukotsusei lunged at the dog, narrowly missing the great white throat. "I see. My fight _is_ with you. But, what would hurt you more than to lose your favorite son?"

"_My favorite_?"

"Honestly now. Do you think that Sesshomaru would have set me free if he hadn't felt just a little bit slighted?"

_Kami-sama! Sesshomaru set you free? How! Shit!_

Inuyasha, knowing his cover was blown, stepped free of the foliage. He could have sworn that the two had already gone inside before he went to look for Sesshomaru. _I can't believe that my father told me to wield his sword. He knows that the attacks I make won't hurt Ryuukotsusei, I don't even know how this thing works._

The hanyou drew the sword, thoroughly surprised when the blade flashed gold and nearly quadrupled in size. Getting over his initial shock, he pointed the weapon at the violet scaled dragon who was slithering towards him. _Keh! I don't know how to use this thing, but he doesn't need to know that._

Ryuukotsusei opened his mouth and began to form a ball of lightning between his teeth. _What the hell is he doing now? That attack is huge! _Inuyasha stood there paralyzed with strategic thought.

"Inuyasha! You fool! Run!" The Inutaisho barked, cursing himself for not taking Inuyasha on battles with him as often as Sesshomaru. The laziness of using the strength of his eldest son to settle disputes in the quickest amount of time was starting to bite him in the ass. _If you survive this, I will train you to the level that I trained Sesshomaru. Even he cannot teach you everything._

Thinking quickly, the hanyou held out the flat of the sword, which deflected the ball of flames, sending it rolling off at a tangent. The scorched earth trail that it left behind cut through the courtyard, a portion of the castle, the entry, and finally to the forest beyond.

_My garden! _thought Inutaisho. He grabbed the dragon's tail in his fangs and shook it, catching his mate unawares. In retaliation Ryuukotsusei flung the barb of the tail against the dog's chest. A bloody gash erupted through the silvery fur, and the inu youkai was flung backwards.

"I shall kill you now, little hanyou. At the feet of daiyoukai, you stand outclassed." Ryuukotsusei threw back his head again, brewing the storm of death in his jaws. This time, the diameter of the giant ball had reached the proportions of twice the hanyou's height.

Inuyasha knew he couldn't run. In an attack with a range this short, it was futile. He could see his father struggling to get up onto his paws. Inutaisho's larger dog form made his movements sluggish; he doubted that he would be able to reach his son in time. As he had seen his father do, Inuyasha thrust Tetsuseiga forward.

"KAZE NO KIZU!"

A force like Inuyasha had never known erupted from the katana. Power raced forward in five fiery veins, rushing to quench themselves with the dragon's flesh.

"No! Inuyasha!" Inutaisho screamed. _Shit! Now he's just more pissed off. _"It won't work. Think about it. Do you think I could ever make a sword that will kill my mate by its force alone?"

He was right. The attack fizzled into the purple hide of his enemy, the electrical current zipping from scale to scale and sparking like fireworks. Tetsuseiga made a slight pinging sound against a rock as Inuyasha dropped the sword, now useless, on the ground.

The feeling of hopelessness began to overwhelm Inuyasha. Suddenly, against his control, he felt his claws and teeth lengthen, thirsting for blood.

Ryuukotsusei catapulted his head forward, flinging the burning ball at the hanyou. _I am the only one who has the full attention of his heart. Not a mortal woman, not a hanyou child. Me!_ the dragon seethed.

In his demon form, Inuyasha could see the blazing fire hurtling towards him. Transforming didn't give him any more protection from death, it just made the prospect easier to bear. He wasn't as afraid of death now. It was now funny to him how much humans feared death. At one with the demon blood in his veins, he now simply just accepted the fact that as soon as the fire touched his skin, there would be nothing left of him. It truly was that simple.

The face on Ryuukotsusei's mask grinned as he watched his handiwork fly in its course to the hanyou. How he would savor the scent of the burnt flesh and hair. After all, what _did _Inutaisho expect from this whole matter? One giant happy family and a blind eye? Like hell.

Suddenly something jumped into the path of the deadly projectile. With a sizzle and a thud, the flaming orb hit the shoulder of a giant white dog. He howled as the fire burnt away the fur and skin, and the electric current wracked through his nerves.

Ryuukotsusei was dumbfounded. "Sesshomaru?" he hissed.

The crescent bearing dog could no longer sustain his canine self. His rate of blood loss was so much faster in youkai form. Collapsing in upon himself, he disappeared into his youki whirlwind, returning once more to his humanoid body.

_Sire. Stop this._

The Lord of the West and his mate called back their human selves, standing like ants in the divots of their destruction. Ryuukotsusei gaped at the hanyou who now held his only son so gently in his arms. Sesshomaru's shoulder and chest were covered in blood; the arm limply hung off of the few ligaments that held it to the rest of his body. The burns had laid open skin like raw meat, but the magic of demon healing was already beginning to mend the skin into its usual unbroken fabric.

"Aniki!" Inuyasha whispered. The demon in his blood had finally taken refuge, now that the mention of his own mortality had ceased.

"Sesshomaru, what is the meaning of this? Why do you ruin yourself to save the life of a worthless half-breed?" The dragon paced impatiently.

Sesshomaru spat out blood, flecking his fluffy pelt even more with crimson. "Sire, you cannot kill this creature."

With his free hand, he pulled his star shine hair away from his neck and thrust his good shoulder forward. The dragon couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"That can't be."

Sesshomaru pointed his nose nobly to the stars above. "He is my brother, and he is my mate. I love him."

The ryuu youkai's arms dropped to his sides, the heavy mail he wore clattering against itself. He spun to face his mate. Inutaisho had a few open wounds, but nothing serious. He would be alright in a day or so, healing naturally.

"Such an ingenious solution to your gravest problem, my love." The dragon said tightly. "You." Ryuukotsusei growled. He struggled to stay still. Rage boiled within him, but he could not move. _I need strength. I need restraint. __Why does it hurt so much? _"You have cuckolded me!"

"But Ryuu!" Inutaisho stepped forward to his mate.

"Congratulations. I cannot kill my mate," the dragon sneered. His tail twitched impatiently. "I cannot kill my only son's mate either. As you can see, I stand at an impasse."

"Ryuu!" The high pitched whine was the only sound that the Lord of the West could seem to make. _I am so sorry. I will do anything. Any thing that you ask._

Ryuukotsusei strode gallantly to where the inu hanyou held his son in bloody arms. Inuyasha pointed Tetsuseiga at the dragon, watching him warily.

"Relax, little one. I'm not going to hurt you or my son. I just came to give you my…erm…my _blessing_."

The dragon's smile made the sensation of ice water trickle down Inuyasha's spine. "From one man to another, I hope that Sesshomaru inherited my sense of loyalty and not his father's. But if he ever starts to stray…just remember: He didn't get it from me."

Bowing ever so slightly, Ryuukotsusei sauntered off into the glade. Inuyasha first stared at the broken youkai in his arms, and then to his father who looked both hungrily and dim-wittedly in the direction his mate had disappeared.

"Ryuu! I'm coming!" The taiyoukai bayed at the half moon before sprinting in the direction of the dragon. "Forgive me! I love you!"

Inuyasha wasn't going to lie. That was weird.

The hanyou stared at his father in disbelief, trying to take in all he had seen. _Ok. First of all, he tried to kill you two centuries ago, Father. Secondly, he tried to kill me. And finally, he nearly kills Sesshomaru. Father, I know he's your mate, but are you mad?_

Sesshomaru stirred against his lap. To Inuyasha's surprise, the demon was laughing. "What!" Inuyasha snapped. He could see no humor in this situation whatsoever.

Sesshomaru tried to lift himself up, but his shaking muscles left him uncoordinated. The taiyoukai clutched at his useless arm, willing the bones to mesh in place. If only he hadn't left the Tenseiga back at the cliff, he could make an easier time of this. In his haste, he had forgotten to thrust it back into his obi.

Inuyasha pulled Sesshomaru into a sitting position, leaning his mate's back against his chest.

"Inuyasha," Sesshomaru said.

"Yes?" The hanyou was receptive to anyone's opinion on the situation. Anyone had to know more about this than him.

He hunched over his brother's shoulder and began to lap at the wounds. Sesshomaru leaned his head to the side, so that Inuyasha could clean the lesions that covered that side of his body easier.

"Welcome to my childhood," he said.

Inuyasha was still slightly baffled, but he continued tending to his mate. All of the bones were finally set, but he knew that even he would never be able to carry Sesshomaru into the castle like this without doing further damage. Even a youkai body had its limits. They would just have to stay out here tonight. With the two youkai lords both back on the land, they had nothing to fear from traveling evil.

Inuyasha picked the scabs and dirt from the mokomoko-sama and began wrapping it around the two of them. Annoyed, Sesshomaru tried to grasp it out of his brother's hands and settle it about their bodies, but his range of motion was much too hindered by pain and unconnected ligaments. Finally, after five minutes of futile arranging, he gave up, rolling his head onto his side so that his face was buried into the thick fur. Inuyasha quickly draped the softness around them, pretending as if his older brother had not just admitted to a slight weakness.

Inuyasha traced a finger down the back of the inu's neck, ghosting it behind the pointed ear. He saw the demon shudder visibly. Drawing back the flap of his kimono, Inuyasha placed a gentle kiss upon the mark.

"Thank you, aniki," he whispered into his brother's ear. Inuyasha's heart quickened as he remembered his brother's words.

'_He is my brother, and he is my mate. I love him.'_

Sesshomaru raised his head from the fluff momentarily to glare at Inuyasha, before lowering himself back down into sleep. Inuyasha smiled. For today, that was enough.

* * *

_FINALLY! Gah! Sesshomaru's finally getting somewhere. But believe me, this story is nowhere near finished. I swear. InuT is going to be the death of me. -shakes head-_

_Read and review! I did a nice and long update for you guys! Hope you liked!_


	10. Equal and Opposite Reaction

_Quick note- Oh dear god, I am soooo sorry this has taken me so long to write and update. I had exams, and then all of the medications that keep my brain from lapsing into insanity decided to stop working. So…I floated around in my own little world for a while…and that world I don't much care for. It is filled with nothing by fear, panic, and darkness. Hooray for better living through modern chemistry! So yes.. I would have liked to update much sooner, but I was really having some issues. _

This chapter is InuT and RyuuK centric. The next two will be Sess and Inu centric. So nobody get mad when I switch character focuses, lol, ok? I really do love you guys. Sometimes the reactions I get to certain events just make me laugh.

Synopsis- RyuuK and InuT are reunited. Oh dear God! And Inuyasha discovers a strange paradox.

Beta- The magnificent Demtria Miriam, whom Inutaisho has a garden fetish for. (I have caught him reading your fiction and doing bizarre things with vegetables…sigh and shakes head.)

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha in any way, and if I did…well, it wouldn't have a very low rating now would it? It would probably have to be put on Cinemax night time or something rather than just Adult Swim. Jeez.

WARNING!!!!! LEMON!!!! You should know where to find it by now!!!!!

* * *

"Ryuu!!!!!" Inutaisho's voice was harsh on the edges from overuse. 

He had been running for five hours straight through pitch black forest and the energy that had spurred him on the chase in the first place had now slowed to a quiet burn. The tiredness that seeped into his bones brought out the second youkai lord that lived within him, the hardened hunter who had claimed his empire by the strength of his bare hands alone.

The lord was tough even if the durability was hidden beneath his carefully pampered claws and his latest fashions in silk. He could go two weeks without sleep and two months without food. His only question was why. The lap of luxury had never hurt anyone. And besides, if he could kick ass and take names, why not look sexy doing it?

That was one characteristic he was glad that he gave to Sesshomaru. What a pity it would be for his successor to be known as "the warlord who can't match his clothing for shit". Inutaisho wondered what his underlings said about him behind his back. Every so often he would hear snatches of whispers about Inutaisho, the flaming _something_. But he could never find anyone with the guts to tell him what sort of a flaming thing he was. They usually just blushed and bowed, mumbling things about his supreme power. Pity.

Inutaisho paused, leaning against a tree to catch his breath for just a moment. It was no wonder Ryuu was able to run so fast; he had spent 200 years resting. In fact, that frozen sleep was one of the most powerful healing spells one could perform on a demon, if the sealer was the mate of the sealed. Here it was the wee hours of the morning, and Inutaisho hadn't really slept well since his bed had lain empty since two centuries before.

The truth of it was, Inutaisho wasn't trying _that_ hard to catch him. After all, where was the dragon even going to go? Ryuukotsusei was relatively sullen and secretive anyway, so out in the middle of the woods was probably the most logical choice. The dragon didn't really have any friends that didn't care for the dog lord, and he was probably too spitting mad; most people wouldn't touch an angry dragon with a ten thousand foot pole. Obviously, Inutaisho wasn't most people.

The two lords had very distinct styles of arguing. Inutaisho was distinctly manipulative. The trick was in pinning the blame on everyone else, so that those arguing against him could never completely trace a problem back to its source. Of course, this never absolved him of complete blame, the issues usually went around in circles until the aggressor either gave up or forgave him.

Ryuukotsusei, however, waged psychological warfare in a completely different manner. Like an axe, his words cleaved through any emotional barriers, to lodge painfully eloquent barbs into the heart. Afterwards, the dragon would stomp away and find a quiet place and sulk. Usually, his disapproval was 30 percent insults and 70 percent sulking.

Inutaisho reflected upon his lover's tiffs in the past. Both lords needed the attention of the other, like stubborn human two-year-olds. At some point in time, Ryuukotsusei would sit down, rest against some rock and wait until his mate found him sulking. The dragon liked to be fawned over, though he pretended that this was not the case. After all, if he didn't appreciate fawning, he wouldn't have been with Inutaisho in the first place, now would he?

Inutaisho dipped his hands into a nearby spring, splashing his face with the cold water and licking the beads of moisture from his palms. There, that was better. Chasing dragons had always made him thirsty. It was just... had never chased a dragon who was quite _this_ angry before.

The inu youkai noticed the stationary feeling that was now in his heart. He smiled. Did he know his lover or what? Ryuukotsusei had noticed that his mate had stopped chasing him and was now stopped somewhere. It looked like _somebody_ wanted to get caught alright.

_Let the games begin, _Inutaisho thought.

The Lord of the West paused for a second, closing his eyes and concentrating on his mark bond. The dragon was a little east of here, or was it west? Definitely east. No, no west. He was sure of it, well kind of. Fuck it all. He charged northward. Nothing else mattered besides finding his mate.

He bayed at the moon his return of the dragon's challenge, wondering whether Ryuukotsusei would decide to stay put or continue running at the call of his voice. The initial shock of Sesshomaru's release of his sire had worn off of Inutaisho, but now that he looked backwards, he did see how the threads of the teporal tapestry wove together in perfect waves. Ryuu, on the other hand, was bludgeoned with two hundred years of amnesia. And dragon skin was only so thick. Inutaisho ignored the surge of guilt that rose bitterly to his tongue at those thoughts.

Then he felt it; there was no movement from his mate.

_So he does want me to find him._ The dog demon finally reached a clearing between a mass of maples; it was the remains of where a human cottage had been centuries previous. Now only a few stones from the foundation marked its past. Leaning his back against a pile of rubble that once resembled a hearth, Ryuukotsusei sat on the ground, his knees pulled up closely to his chest. The barb on the end of his tail twitched in an aggravated manner.

_Here goes_.

Inutaisho crept over to his mate and slid down beside him. Ryuukotsusei scooted an inch away from the inu and rested his forehead on his knees so that Inutaisho couldn't read the expressions on his face.

"You know that I feel your emotions, even when they aren't expressed outwardly."

An emerald eye glared in his direction before returning to its sulking place behind the dragon's knee.

"Come on now. We are mates. We are supposed to share our lives together. We need to work this out." Inutaisho closed his eyes as he reached over to Ryuukotsusei's shoulder. He didn't have a clue what he was doing or saying. He just knew he had to do _something_. And hopefully it was the _right_ something.

The muscles tensed. Oh shit. Wrong something. "Get your lying, _cowardly_, _unfaithful_ hands off of me," came the hiss from between clenched teeth.

It was time for a different approach. The lord licked his lips. Hopefully he would come out of this one alright.

"Hit me," Inutaisho said. _Oh Kami, I just might deserve this one._

The dragon's tail stopped twitching and the glowering pair of green eyes stared at him with shock.

"I cannot." Ryuukotsusei balled his hand into a fist and cracked his knuckles, but let it fall back to his side.

"Suit yourself." Inutaisho sighed with relief, and turned away to stare at the light purple that was beginning to form on the horizon. _Just tell me what you-_

Ryuukotsusei's right fist connected firmly with the lord's cheekbone before he could finish the thought, the left one landing squarely in the empty space below his sternum. Inutaisho crashed dazedly into the dirt.

"I gave you your chance to hit me. What the fuck was that?" he croaked.

Ryuukotsusei now stood above him, looking blithely down his nose at the dog in the dirt. "Do you think I ever saw it coming, love?"

_He has a valid point_. "Please, let's put the past behind us. I know it will be hard, but we can do it."

"Don't think it is that easy for me." Ryuu tapped his claws on his gauntlets.

Pulling himself up off the ground, Inutaisho flicked the dragon's metal breast plate. "Hit me again," he said.

"Why?" Ryuukotsusei furrowed his brows together.

Fire burned in the golden eyes. "I don't know. Just do it."

When the dragon made no moves, Inutaisho stabbed his claws into his mate's shoulders and ripped four gashes into the skin.

The moonlight flashed off of Ryuukotsusei's eyeteeth. "Well since you want it so badly."

He threw an uppercut into the inu youkai's chin, effectively misaligning his jaw with a sickening pop. The dragon eyed his mate's sprawling body suspiciously. _Why the hell won't he fight back or defend himself? _He turned away. Ryuukotsusei preferred not to look at Inutaisho's body, which he had knocked so unceremoniously onto the ground. It reminded him too much of a few hits he had landed in a fight that had happened so long ago.

He heard scrabbling in the dirt behind him. Whirling around, he watched Inutaisho wince as he jostled his dislocated jaw back into position. "Do it again!" he roared.

Ryuukotsusei throttled his hands around the dog's throat, hoping for a response. "Are you mad!? Suicidal? Stupid?"

Inutaisho just hung there, suspended by the dragon's hold, making no move to claw at the hands that encircled his throat. Ryuukotsusei sighed and released him.

The inu rubbed his throat; flashing the bruises that had been formed by his lover's hands. "If this is the only way I can get you to touch me again—" he began.

"Don't be a fool, Inutaisho," the dragon spat.

Inutaisho gently cupped Ryuukotsusei's face in his hands. "I will keep doing it until my skull cracks open and my blood flows, not in my body, but only in rivers on the dirt."

"Don't be so morbid. It doesn't suit you." The ryuu youkai pulled away, but still stared at his mate.

"So you will come back with me?" Inutaisho asked. "Your son would like to have you around, I think. I've done a terrible job raising him on my own."

"Yes, I will come." He stared at the earth. "For the sake of my son."

"Good." Inutaisho began to walk in the direction of the castle. _That should help a little bit with things around here._

"I have not forgiven you for what you have done," the dragon said.

The Lord of the West stopped, and turned to smile at his mate. "I know."

Finally, as the first glimmers of sunrise began to appear, the two lords headed to their home together. This time when Inutaisho reached for the dragon's hand, he didn't pull away.

xXx

Sesshomaru awoke to the blinding sun and the feeling that his fur was going to suffocate him. He stretched out his arms only to be reminded of the blinding ball of plasma he had jumped in front of a few hours earlier. The shoulder had healed relatively well; meaning that his arm had reconnected, and there was skin that covered the full joint. This was one way that demons healed differently than humans and some lesser hanyous. Wounds were healed from the outside in, rather than from the inside out. The weakness was unseen to those unaware of the injury. Sure it looked ok, but it hurt like hell!

He wanted to sleep a little more, but there was just a little too much noise for him. Somebody was snoring like a forester sawing logs…

He forgot he wasn't sleeping alone. Sesshomaru cursed to himself, but not too offensively. Memories of the past night flooded back to him.

_Oh damn it. He heard me say it. How the hell am I going to live that one down?_ Sesshomaru knew that saying that one word was the only thing that would have stopped his sire from killing the hanyou, but he had wanted Inuyasha to remain in the dark about it a little bit longer. If the hanyou wasn't tactful enough to pick up the miniscule clues that Sesshomaru had laid behind in the past, he didn't really deserve to be told outright so soon.

He glanced at his pelt, which was wound around his sleeping brother. As carefully as he could, Sesshomaru got to his feet and began to lightly tug at the fluffy garment, trying to remove it without disturbing the hanyou. If he could just go to his chambers, to his own bed, he could sleep in peace. And the more sleep he got, the faster his weakened shoulder would heal.

Ha! He almost got it! Only a foot remained in the hanyou's grasp…

"Hey, asshole. Leave the fluffy thing. Can't you tell I'm trying to sleep?"

"It's _my_ fluffy thing, brother. And I don't know if you remember anything about last night, but if you do, you will understand why _I _deserve to have _my_ fluffy thing back so that I can go back to _my_ room and sleep."

"Can't you do that here?"

"No. Your snoring is so loud it disturbs the sleep of the dead."

"Fine." Inuyasha released the end of the mokomoko-sama.

Sesshomaru wrapped the pelt up in his arms and began to journey into the fortress. He saw his father's two remaining swords leaning up against the wall, and his sire's armor neatly piled up in another corner of the room. _I wonder how things worked out last night for the two of them. At least both are still here._

He stared again at the Tetsuseiga and the Sou'unga._ Shit, I have to go find Tenseiga._ He hoped that it hadn't grown legs just to spite him. Hey, at least he could fly.

Luckily the sword was right where he remembered leaving it, right in front of the cliff that had once supported his sire. In the daylight, it was interesting to see the cliff now that Ryuukotsusei was gone from it. A deep gash, about ten feet deep was in the rocks, where the dragon's spine had been lodged after being slammed into the cliff and then cemented into the rock wall by time.

Sesshomaru unsheathed Tenseiga and held it forward in his weak arm. The sword felt so heavy, but at least it didn't burn him. _Can you heal me?_

The sword didn't even pulse. The blade remained lifeless as ever, much to the demon's dismay.

_It's my father's sword anyhow. It's not supposed to answer to my touch._

But then again, something didn't add up. In the fight between his sire and his brother, he had seen the five telltale surges of power that were released by the kaze no kizu. By all records, the Tetsuseiga really shouldn't have released a powerful attack under his brother's hands.

Sesshomaru eyed himself in the sword's reflection_. I knew it was useless._

Other images from last night entered his head. A lot of that night was gone from his memory. The electricity in his sire's attack fire had hit his shoulder, which was so close to his brain that some memory loss was inevitable. But, when he had taken Ryuukotsusei's attack, he vaguely remembered a very protective Inuyasha leaning over his body, threatening the dragon with what he knew was a useless sword to him.

The more Sesshomaru thought about it, the more ironic it really was. Neither son of the Lord of the West could use swords from the fangs of his father to save himself, or anyone else. The only one who benefited from the whole ordeal was Ryuukotsusei, and even that was marginal. Damn Inutaisho! People said that he was the most intelligent ruler that had ever graced the west, but Sesshomaru seriously doubted that Inutaisho ever estimated correctly the power of his far reaching actions.

Which son had inherited his _luck_ was destined to be both charmed and doomed at the same time. Perhaps both sons of the Lord had gotten this same trait.

Shoving the sword back into his obi, he flew back to the castle. If the sword wasn't going to heal him, he was going to need to rest.

After reaching his home, Sesshomaru put the Tenseiga back with its other two companions and headed up the stairs to his chambers. His shoulder was really starting to ache.

The stairwell wasn't particularly acoustic, but it was much noisier than it should have been, almost as if there was an echo. He paused; the noise stopped. Annoyed he continued up the steps as fast as he could, still hearing that same shuffling-swishing noise. Sesshomaru whirled around, but nobody was there.

_I am tired. Either that or I have finally lost my sanity living in this psychotic castle._

Sesshomaru crawled into his bed, not bothering to change clothing. Within minutes, he was dead to the world. Until such a horrific injury was fully healed, his stamina was going to be sub par.

Finally Inuyasha knew it was safe to crawl out from the shadows of the stairwell. Seeing Sesshomaru asleep on his back, he gingerly slid into the bed behind him, wrapping an arm around the demon's waist. Inuyasha inspected the injured shoulder, even though he knew that the injury was now internal. In order for his brother to just collapse like that, it had to have been really painful for him.

Sesshomaru shifted in his sleep, which rolled him to face Inuyasha's chest. Inuyasha ran his hands through his brother's hair as he studied his face. Sesshomaru looked so different when he was deep in slumber, child-like almost.

This thought amused Inuyasha to no end. He knew that though he was not entirely mortal, he would age faster than a full demon physically, but have a comparable life span. This meant that he would _eventually_ look older than Sesshomaru. They were so close in relative age anyway. Whenever humans saw the two boys, they always guessed that Inuyasha was a boy of 16 and estimated Sesshomaru to be roughly 20, even though a span of a millennium fell between their two births.

The more and more Inuyasha thought, the stranger his relationship with his brother became.

_We are brothers, lovers, enemies, friends, and strangers all at the same time._

Inuyasha kissed Sesshomaru on the crescent that decorated his forehead. He knew the gravity behind his brother's actions the past few days. Nothing his brother did, no matter how small, was devoid of meaning.

_All these years, have you really just been trying to tell me what you said last night?_

Inuyasha sighed and pulled Sesshomaru in closer to him. He was sure that if the youkai had been awake for his bedroom intrusion, Inuyasha would have sustained some kind of injury. Closing his eyes, Inuyasha prepared to fall back asleep in his brother's comforting presence.

With Ryuukotsusei now in the household, both of Inutaisho's sons were going to live a completely different life... As if mating hadn't been enough of a change.

_Regardless of what happens next, no matter how strong you are, no matter how strained we become, I will not leave you here alone._

xXx

Inutaisho peeked into the open room, smiling at the scene before him; his sons were fast asleep, snuggled together on Sesshomaru's bed. A bed. Oh, that sounded soooooo good.

The Lord of the West could stay awake much, much longer, but if his sons were going to sleep the day away, he might as well do the same. It was nice to have a castle that was full. Even if his mate was only on speaking terms with one and a half members of the household.

At least all of his bruises were gone. Yes, he was still a little stiff from a few of the hits, but in this state he could go easily into the baths and not arouse any strange stares from his serving staff. Well, any stares stranger than normal from his serving staff. Casually, he undressed and sauntered into the room of his private bath.

"I didn't expect that you would be in here," spoke a voice from the other side. Inutaisho nearly jumped out of his skin.

"I could say the same for you." Shit! Did he really just accidentally walk in a room stark naked with his also stark naked mate, the same one who was _not_ on fully friendly terms with him?

"The same for me? Well now," the dragon purred as he stroked his chin.

Ryuukotsusei reclined against the backsplash of the central pool, so that he rested the side of his face against his forearms. Inutaisho swept his eyes over the body that was laid out before him, taking in the graceful, muscular form. He turned his head to inspect the floor. For some reason, a certain area of his body just kept holding his attention much longer than it should.

"I have endured the snows of two hundred winters, the rains of two hundred springs, the winds of two hundred summers, and the decay of two hundred autumns. I know I might not be as dainty as you are, but every couple of centuries, I _do _feel the need to take a bath." Ryuukotsusei laughed and threw a scrub brush at Inutaisho, which made a dull thud when it caught the inu youkai in the chest.

"The least I can do is to help remove it all."

"If you can."

"I can try."

"Then I commend you."

Inutaisho waded into the water so that he was waist deep, and approached the latent dragon, offering a hand to him in invitation. "Please join me."

The inu youkai filled his free hand with soap and began to suds up his mate's curly purple hair, massaging it deep into the scalp. The white rivers of soap streaked down from his locks, down his neck and chest, reminding him of the flowing trails of something else that he had missed so much. In fact the pure whiteness surprised him completely. Shouldn't it be grey with dirt?

"For being outside for that long, your hair isn't _that_ dirty." Kami, Inutaisho wished he had that problem.

Ryuukotsusei submerged himself in the water, letting his mate wash away the soap from his mane by combing through it with those oh-so-familiar fingers. The curls were now relaxed into dark tendrils that clung to his shoulders.

"Honestly now. After how many years…do I really have to keep reminding you that I _am _a dragon?" Ryuukotsusei growled.

Inutaisho frowned. "I know, but I really don't see how that applies here."

"We dragons are created from the elements of the earth and heavens themselves. I am descended from a clan founded by sky dragons. You on the other hand…" Ryuukotsusei rolled his eyes.

"What? I am from a long line of inugami. And your point?" Inutaisho placed his hands on his hips.

The dragon winked. "Humans have interesting myths about inu youkai. Supposedly a human can create an inu youkai by starving their pet dog to death, so that its angry spirit may avenge their enemies in the afterlife."

"That's stupid," Inutaisho spat. "Why the hell would any inu youkai want to serve the man who killed him?"

"The dog, after it has avenged the enemies of its human killer, has the right to haunt its former owner, and if its spirit is greater than that of the owner, the inu youkai may possess the body of his killer." Ryuukotsusei poked his purple clawed index finger into his mate's shoulder. "From there he grows stronger and stronger every generation."

Inutaisho raised an eyebrow at his mate, observing the proud rise of the dragon's chest as he looked superiorly down his nose at the inu youkai. The Lord of the West coughed to cover up his amusement. _Oh dear God. He's having a cerebral moment._

The dragon had some idiosyncrasies that Inutaisho had forgotten about. Sometimes he really had to wonder why they meshed so well.

_My mate is Ryuukotsusei, the dragon who swallowed an entire library and forgot to throw it up. Welcome home, from the resident dumb ass._

The dragon continued on his tirade. "The only reason why I was even allowed to consider mating you was because you _were_ a dog demon. Dragons don't usually care to mate with those not of dragon blood. An inu youkai mixes the strongest characteristics of his mongrel heritage. After all, dogs are the fallen descendants of wolves. You rule well because you have the compassion and ingenuity of a human and the intelligence, loyalty and physical power of a wolf."

_At least he flattered me at the end, rather than insulting me. That's a start. _Inutaisho grabbed the bar of soap and began rubbing the dragon's back with it. "And you know all of this crap and I don't because?"

Ryuukotsusei slid his index finger under his mate's chin, pulling their faces mere millimeters apart. "My dear, Inutaisho, it's because all youkai have a purpose. And believe me, yours wasn't memory or wisdom."

"Ha ha. Very funny," Inutaisho scoffed, pulling away slightly. Even though Ryuukotsusei wasn't being really nice, it was progress to have a real conversation. It was just a bonus that he got to touch his mate's beautiful body as well.

"Hmmmm. I don't remember there ever being any record of my ancestry before we claimed the throne of the west. I already knew that lesser inu youkai could be made that way, but still…Why does that mean that I get dirty and you don't?" Inutaisho looked at the dragon quizzically.

"Dogs need to be groomed."

Ryuukotsusei snaked his hands down to Inutaisho's hips, grasping the slightly protruding bones like handles to pull the dog back into him. Taking the soap out of the dog's hands, he began to lather up his mate's body, relishing the feel of his mate's form under his hands after so long.

Soapy hands massaged Inutaisho's shoulders, then his chest, back, and waist. The lord of the west tilted his head backwards to kiss the dragon's cheek in appreciation, to which the dragon returned by licking his lover's lips before setting his own down upon them. While his tongue explored the inu's mouth, he continued the journey of his hands down to reach between Inutaisho's legs.

The inu youkai grew to an even larger size against the grasp of Ryuukotsusei's hands under the water. He tightened his hand around the base of Inutaisho's cock, while using the other to spin around the top. He smiled as he felt it twitch appreciatively under his palm.

Releasing Inutaisho from the kiss, he then began kissing the stretches of open shoulder, chest, and back that he could reach, violently tearing at the pale flesh that screamed for him to be taken.

Still stroking Inutaisho with one hand, Ryuukotsusei pulled the dog's chest backwards, so that he could whisper in his ear. With his forked, violet tongue, he flicked the lobe that dangled in front of his mouth.

"Do you remember when we used to do this?"

"Yes. Like it was yesterday," the Lord of the West panted.

"Then grab the ledge," Ryuukotsusei ordered.

EDITED FOR LEMON CONTENT

"Ryuu."

Ryuukotsusei ran his hands over Inutaisho's arms, sliding his fingers into the ledge that Inutaisho clung to. The dragon felt the dog clench around him as their fingers knit together.

"You are mine, and no one else's," he breathed into the dog's ear. "You should do best to remember that."

"I am yours, only if you are mine."

"If I am not yours, would I have come back?"

EDITED FOR LEMON CONTENT

"If you are mine, come for me," the dragon pleaded. Inutaisho closed his eyes. _If, my love? If?_

"If you will still have me, join me," Inutaisho gasped. _Please Ryuu!_

_EDITED FOR LEMON CONTENT_

Ryuukotsusei was the first to move, ascending the stairs out of the baths and wrapping himself in a robe before rushing out of the door. The coldness that seeped in when he removed his body from Inutaisho's made the dog flinch. How he envied the dragon's ability to just ignore the cold. Sure he had no issues with it when he was in true form, but right now, he was freezing. How he wished that his mate had not run out so quickly and could warm him up.

_That's why he did it. Damn him and his sneaky warfare. _Inutaisho cursed at the cold once more and clambered out to find his robe.

Upon entering the room, Inutaisho found Ryuukotsusei laying down on the bed diagonally, wrapping himself in the covers and spreading out as far as his body would reach. His tail stuck out of the bundle of sheets and trailed off of the bed side, but luckily the scales didn't really feel temperature in quite the same way his body did.

"Hey you, scoot over; quit hogging the bed and the covers. I was fucking tired to begin with, but now it's your fault that I _really_ have no energy."

Ryuukotsusei's emerald eyes peeked up groggily over the pillows. "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

Inutaisho tried to nudge into the bed so that he was flush against his mate's body, but his ass still hung off the side of the bed. "No really, scoot over."

The dragon twitched his tail in a slightly feline manner. "Did I say that you could sleep with me in _my_ bed?"

The dog lord was dumbstruck. "Your bed? It's mine, too."

"You should have thought about that before you kicked me out of it for, oh, I don't know... 200 years."

"But, that's—"

"Seriously. I slept in _one_ position for that whole time. No rolling to sleep on my side like I prefer, no back support, and of course, your deadliest sin yet, no pillow."

"Ryuu, you can't just—"

"Just because I pleasured you doesn't mean you are out of the dog house just yet, my love."

Ryuukotsusei grabbed a pillow and launched it at the Lord of the West. "Here. Look at what a generous demon I am. From one lover to another, for you, my floor is always open."

Inutaisho glared at his mate, but then grabbed his own twin fluffy pelts and laid them on the floor next to the futon that now was occupied by the _other_ lord of the west. Ryuukotsusei counted backwards in his head. _Five, four, three, two, one..._

Inutaisho had already fallen asleep and was now snoring gently into the fluff that was wrapped around his hands. The dragon rolled over so that he could observe the dog's peaceful slumber. He always was the first one asleep. But then again, if Ryuukotsusei was that fidgety and emotionally explosive, he might wear himself out that quickly as well.

In the seclusion of their room, with the daylight shut out of the room tightly by a myriad of blinds and curtains, Ryuukotsusei traced the body of his lover in the gentle darkness. Unbeknownst to the inu youkai, he ran his hands through the platinum shining hair and caressed the violet stripes that adorned each cheek bone. He pried one of the sliver clawed hands away from grasping his makeshift blanket, and examined each of the perfect nails adorning his hand, memorizing once again the shapes of his long and graceful fingers. If the ryuu youkai didn't know any better, the pale being could have been a fallen angel.

Pulling back his hair, Ryuukotsusei kissed the mark on his mate's neck that claimed his ownership. It was different from the one he had seen on his son's body that had been made by that stupid inu hanyou. The mark left by his own teeth formed the four points of a perfect rectangle, one for each deeply puncturing fang. Outlining that rectangle with his tongue, Ryuukotsusei felt Inutaisho shudder underneath of him in contentment. This response satisfied the dragon somewhat, but not completely. After one last glance, he settled back down against the mattress, into the company of his thoughts.

_Inutaisho, if you have always needed me this much, then where did I go wrong?_

* * *

_Expect another installment circa Thanksgiving. I have a long plane ride home to Texas and back with which to write a chapter. So yes…much faster updating from now on. Hopefully late November, then mid December, and then biweekly after that until school restarts for me?!? And then who knows? _

The next chapters will be more Inu/Sess oriented. I just had to get through this portion first. Thanks again and of course, review please!


	11. Two to Tango

_Quick Note- I am soooo sorry it took this long to get this chapter out. I had it finished near the end of Thanksgiving, but then my harddrive died, taking TT11 and my 20 page term paper on the Origins of Modern Numerology with it. So, I had to rewrite both of those. And when I finished, I sent it out to Dembo, who was really really busy and I WILL NOT POST WITHOUT HER!!!! Anyways, she's had it for a few weeks now, so here it is, finally finished._

_Because I hate having to go between updates and having shit happen that delays me and NOT being able to tell you guys, I have started keeping a livejournal for myself as well as my fiction. I update what happens in there._

_This is the url, just remove the spaces and change the x's to t's and you should get there. _

_hxxp // vixenofargentum . livejournal . com /_

_And besides, I did some special special RyuuK/InuT art with my new Photoshop._

_hxxp // www . deviantart . com / deviation /45258019/_

Oh and even more wonderful news. Topsy Turvy was just nominated for best yaoi fiction in the Feudal Association's quarterly competition. If you really like this piece, please vote for it. I believe the link to get to it is here:

hxxp // feudalassociation . cadkitten . com / homepage . htm

_Synopsis- What really happened the time that Inuyasha saw Sesshomaru lose control of his youki, what planted the mating idea in InuT's head, and plot/character development...via a wonderful citrusy lime! Whoohoo!_

_Beta- The most splendiferous Demetria Miriam, whose brain is nowhere near as bald as her tires. I heart you!_

_Disclaimer- Ummm Happy Holidays? If you think I make money off of this...you are stupid and there is no excuse for you. _

From the Memories of Sesshomaru

10 years ago

Sesshomaru looked around him. He was in a field of waving grasses in the northern most part of the castle grounds. Where the hell had that hanyou gone? It was bad enough that he had wandered off somewhere, but making their father worry like this was ridiculous. Inuyasha had never been the timeliest creature on the face of the earth, but being two hours late for dinner was excessive, even for him.

Inuyasha's scent was strong here; it even thickened as it approached the edge of their castle grounds. Sesshomaru smirked. He couldn't wait until Inutaisho found out that Inuyasha had left the area without permission, not to mention not showing up for the family dinner. If there was one thing that Inutaisho was ever serious about, it was an excellent meal.

The youkai ventured into the thick woods that bordered the meadows. His brother had only passed through this portion of the forest a few minutes ago. But, there was another scent that was heavy here, too. Sesshomaru furrowed his eyebrows, perplexed at the origin of the scent. It smelled slightly holy…and very human. This was a very interesting development indeed.

Creeping steadily, so as not to make a sound, Sesshomaru followed the trail. This other scent, though holy, did not sit well with him. It made the side of his upper lip curl up in an involuntarily snarl. Sesshomaru was unused to an emotion having such a strong grip over him. Especially a petty emotion, like wrath.

While the inu youkai certainly felt angry, he didn't necessarily think he could call this emotion wrath. In fact, he didn't know what _to_ call it; he had never felt this agitated before.

"You should tell them about us, Inuyasha! You can't just leave them like that," a female voice sounded from nearby. Sesshomaru halted in mid step, his balance perfect and precise, focusing his mind on her words.

Between the trunks of the trees, he could see his brother pacing wildly, the red of his fire rat robes flashing brightly between the dark trunks.

"Sure I can," he spat. "I'm just a burden to them, anyway. You don't understand."

The woman stepped out from behind a tree that had been concealing her from Sesshomaru's sight. She was dressed in the red hakama traditional of human mikos. Her hair was a shiny black stream down her back, only interrupted once by an ornate white tie. By human standards, she could be considered beautiful. As for youkai standards, well, Sesshomaru had no idea. He just didn't see humans in that light.

"You're right, I don't," she whispered. "But I can't understand unless you explain it to me."

The woman reached for Inuyasha, taking the hanyou's right hand between her own delicate hands. Sesshomaru felt his gut wretch. Why was that woman touching his brother? And most of all, why was he so…angry about it? This wasn't making any sense.

Inuyasha bowed his head. "Fine. My mom's dead. My father loves me, but I know that I am a liability to him. And my brother – err, my half-brother – well, he just hates me."

The woman laughed, throwing her head back so that he could see her throat bob in the motion. Sesshomaru wanted to tear his claws into the soft pale flesh and let her lifeblood run down his fingers. He wanted to feel the warmth drain from her body as the color left her skin.

Why did he feel this way?

"I'm sure he doesn't hate you. All siblings fight from time to time. I mean, my sister and I get along most of the time, but we really used to fight when we were younger," she said.

Inuyasha's dog ears faced backwards in annoyance. "Wanna bet? Keh, that asshole wished I was dead from the moment I was born."

"It gets better, Inuyasha. It works that way with everyone when maturity finally sets in. I'm sure that you both care for each other, sometimes it just takes a little bit of time to see that your siblings are people, too."

"My brother, mature?" The hanyou sighed and crossed his hands over his chest. "I suppose you're right."

The priestess smiled and wrapped an arm around his brother's back. With every inch she pulled him closer to her chest, more hairs on Sesshomaru's neck stood at attention.

"Besides, don't you think that they would be happy for us?"

_Happy for you? What on earth would I be happy for?_ Sesshomaru wondered.

"I know my father probably had somebody already in mind for me, but I'm sure my brother will be thrilled to see me gone," the hanyou mused.

"And why would you be leaving, Inuyasha?" Sesshomaru growled. He hadn't meant to make his presence known, but for whatever reason, he couldn't stand to watch the scene unfold any longer. His nerves were incensed. "You certainly have some nerve to blow off dinner with Father, not to mention leaving castle grounds."

"Go to hell. It's not like you don't sneak out every once and a while and go to that one cliff near the ocean. You can't deny it. I've seen you."

"Father knows where I am going and does not try to stop me," Sesshomaru fumed. "That has absolutely nothing to do with this. You couldn't even begin to understand about that."

"Oh yeah? Well, I know about something that you wouldn't understand either. Father would, though."

"Oh, I see, the poor girl. Would that be how to dilute a bloodline?"

"No, you conceited jerk. How to love somebody other than yourself!"

_What?! Love?!_ Exactly who was this woman to Inuyasha? Of course, with Inuyasha being hanyou, Sesshomaru could see his brother feeling a stronger-than-youkai urge to rut with human females, but love?

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Fine. Formalities, formalities." He stood between his brother and the miko.

"Kikyo, this is my older brother, Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru, this is Kikyo."

Sesshomaru glared at Kikyo. "What is the meaning of this?"

"I have been sneaking out to see her for the past year now, and we are in love. I will marry her and leave the castle. See, Sesshomaru, you always wanted me gone, and now I will be. Father will understand. It's not like I'm the heir to his titles."

"But she's human."

"And I'm half, in case you forgot, dipshit."

Inuyasha drew the woman into his arms and bent his head down over her lips. Sesshomaru was horrified as the couple joined their lips together in a deep kiss. He felt as if he was drowning; the air evaded all attempts to breathe it in.

Sesshomaru felt the red wisps of his youki fly free from his body._ Kami-sama! What am I doing?_ He fought to regain control of his energies, but his feral demon self struggled even harder.

_Huh?_ Inuyasha jumped as he saw his brother's youki aura swirling around him. The youkai's eyes were as red as blood and his teeth grew longer and sharper.

Sesshomaru lunged forward, wrenching the girl from his brother's arms. The tips of his razor-sharp claws sunk into the skin of Kikyo's shoulders, leaking toxins into her body. With the youki fully possessing his mind, Sesshomaru slashed at the girl with his half transformed claws and fangs.

_Sesshomaru! Control yourself! Emotion does not call for action on impulse!_

Finally, the red receded from the whites of his eyes, leaving him with only the aftermath of gore draped across his chest. The body of the girl was no longer recognizable; his venom had eaten away the flesh marked by each claw. Sesshomaru released her from his hold, the body hitting the ground with a dull thud. He sucked in air, trying to regain his composure as best he could.

Inuyasha stared at him, his mouth agape with an anguished mixture of confusion, loathing, and surprise.

"You killed her!" Inuyasha lunged at Sesshomaru, claws narrowly missing the youkai's flesh.

The taiyoukai caught his wrist in one fluid moment, threatening the hanyou's palm with his venomous thumb. "She's mortal. She was going to die anyway."

Inuyasha shook his head. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

"I ask you the same question." Sesshomaru could still feel the anger boiling in his veins. "Humans," he spat. "Why protect them? Why miss them? Why love them?"

Inuyasha tore his arm from his brother's grasp, a low growl resounding in his throat. "Wait until Father hears you killed a human in cold blood."

Sesshomaru pointed his noble nose to the sky in answer. "No, no, otouto. Wait until Father hears that you have been leaving the grounds without permission to see a human woman he would never mate you with."

"I love Kikyo. You would never understand love. It would be completely lost on your tiny, charcoaled heart."

"I do know love. I know the love capable of the youkai races. I know what it is to feel duty and loyalty to another without reason, expecting nothing in return. It is your type of love, which should aptly be called madness, that is nothing but selfishness. You say that you are selfless in love, but you are wrong."

Inuyasha chewed on a claw. This was such a strange oratorio for his brother to make.

"If one with already dirtied blood such as you were to mate with a human, at least choose one from a good bloodline. Show some pride in your own noble heritage. Do you hold no respect for Father?"

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes. _Bastard. Always twisting his words so that he's always right. Ambiguously moral asshole. _

"I hate you!" Inuyasha seethed.

Sesshomaru smiled.

Now that Kikyo lay dead, Inuyasha knew Inutaisho had to find out what happened anyway. Nothing would be lost, as long as the Tenseiga was in the hands of the Western Lord. He just had to get the body to the Lord before the soul reapers came. The hanyou sprinted as fast as he could back to the castle.

Sesshomaru pulled his youki around him for flight. Just as long as he reached Inutaisho first, he had a chance in proving his innocence. Not for the death of the priestess, but in killing for a purely personal motive. A motive he himself had yet to identify.

xXx

Inutaisho winced as he saw the maimed body sprawled out on the ground. She was just an average looking human miko. She didn't even have her bow and arrows with her. Whatever her exact business was with Inuyasha, she did not mean for there to be any violence at all. _Damn it, Sesshomaru. What the hell made you lose control?_

The inu taiyoukai paused to think of what could have possibly set off so many alarms in Sesshomaru's head. He had suspected something about his eldest son for quite a long time, a connection a little deeper than that of blood, that bound him to Inuyasha. But, that didn't explain everything.

_Did you do what I think you did?_

He bent over the corpse to examine her wounds a little more. She was littered with deep gouges caused by Sesshomaru's claws, which were now beginning to ooze from the poison, but there was something curious around her neck. Besides the bruises of being poisoned and throttled to death at the same time, two very deep puncture marks that were messily ripped. This type of wound could only be left by the fangs of a transformed youkai, or at least one who was in the process of tranformation.

Inutaisho was taken aback. Sesshomaru had transformed his fangs when he had ripped into her. The beast that had killed her could hardly be called Sesshomaru at all. He had been overcome by his own youki, and in his passionate anger, slain the priestess.

He had heard Inuyasha's explanation of the situation. He had announced to his brother that he wished to marry this ningen woman, and when they kissed, Sesshomaru just ripped her from his hands and killed her. Sesshomaru on the other hand said that he killed the girl in order to punish Inuyasha for disobeying Inutaisho and for choosing a mate far below his social stature.

_Out of all of us, Sesshomaru, your skills at lying are the worst. _

Inutaisho smirked. What a rational answer for an obviously irrational response. He had pretended to believe his eldest son, but he knew better than to accept his answer as verbatim. He had to check out the carnage himself before coming to any conclusion.

Inutaisho could smell the emotion left by the traces of youki on the young woman's body. He knew exactly what had happened now. In fact, it made his heart flutter in happiness. Sesshomaru had killed her out of jealousy. Not jealousy that his brother wished to claim her, but jealousy that she would claim him.

_You're welcome, Sesshomaru. Good ole dad's on your side! But now... It's judgment day!_

Holding the Tenseiga over her body, it pulsed against his palm. Six grotesque pallbearers swarmed all over the carcass, happily chattering to one another about their newest acquisition. He cut through their spindly bodies, making them vanish in a puff of blue smoke.

Kikyo's wounds closed up and healed instantly. The next moment she clasped a single hand to her chest and coughed up blood to her surprise. Dazedly, she glanced around her, waiting for the world to stop spinning. She had been in the spirit world for a few hours now, it was so jarring to come back from the haze of the dead.

Finally, she noticed the stunning white dog demon who towered over her crumpled form. Inutaisho sank to one knee, offering the disoriented miko his hand.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I believe so." Kikyo rubbed her head as she spoke. How long had she been dead? The demon with her appeared to have some sort of enchanted sword that could recall spirits into the living. "May I ask you for your name?"

"I am Inutaisho, the Lord of the Western Lands." He sheathed the blade back in its scabbard.

_Oh. So this is Inuyasha's father._ Kikyo chewed on her bottom lip. How to explain her current situation...? "I told your oldest son, Sesshomaru, that—"

"You must never see my son again. Either of them." The dog lord tried as hard as he could to give the sentence a gentler tone, but if it was gentle he was going for, perhaps he should have gone with a different choice of words.

"Oh," Kikyo intoned. _I see he has already heard what happened here._ "I understand. With having a human mate, I just thought you would be more understanding of his situation."

"Situation?" Inutaisho looked at her intently.

"Yes." The priestess took a deep breath. "Inuyasha deserves a mate who will love and care for him, for the hanyou that he is. I can do all of these things, my lord."

Inutaisho shook his head. "That will not be necessary. Though neither of them know it yet, this is already being provided."

_What?!?_ Kikyo's head was already spinning from returning from the afterlife, but this was sacrilege.

The youkai nodded his head, flashing the pearliest smile he could manage. "Thank you for your concern. He is lucky to have a friend like you."

Kikyo's hands balled into fists at her side. _I understand why Inuyasha is so anxious to get out of this family. Who the hell is this man? Who does he think he is?_

"You can't just say that," she spat. "You of all people should know that love sometimes bridges boundaries you would not cross otherwise. Inuyasha was conceived in love, was he not?"

"Yes, I loved his human mother, but she was not the one for me, nor could she have ever been."

_Ah, he was born of a mistress. That might explain a few of the difficulties in his relationship with his brother. So, Sesshomaru's mother is still alive? _

Inutaisho straightened himself up to his full height. "If you ever come here again, you will not see Inuyasha. I am not liable for my eldest son's actions, should he come upon the two of you again. And I do not give you permission to marry him. Like I said, I have a suitable person in mind."

"Yes, my lord."

"Then that is all I must say."

Kikyo turned away from the taiyoukai, ready to venture back to her village. Her clothing was in bloodstained shambles that had been ripped by the other dog demon's claws. Once she returned to the cottage where she lived with her young sister, she could have a warm bath and change into a new set of clothing.

When she had ventured into the world of the dead, she had noticed something strange around the figure of Sesshomaru. In her own shadowy death form she could see the flaming aura of his youki but underneath of it, she could see the vestiges of other emotions. While when she had looked upon Inuyasha, she had seen hints of red anger and purple passion, she did not see any anger when she looked at his full youkai sibling. Sesshomaru had been bathed in an eerie emerald green. This puzzled the priestess.

Why would Sesshomaru be feeling jealous?

Kikyo would never again return to the portion of the forest where she had been killed. Now that Inuyasha's family knew of their love, she was sure that the hanyou would never be left under such a loose watch for a long time. After all, Inutaisho had said that he had somebody in mind for his son, somebody who would love and care for him, just as he was. If she was ever caught with Inuyasha again, and Sesshomaru was in tow, she doubted that she would be revived the next time. Though the Lord of the West seemed innocuous enough, there was still something a little creepy in his smile. She also knew that though she posessed immense spiritual power, against Inutaisho, she stood no chance.

Besides, she had heard the rumors of a strange jewel in the east, one that needed the purifying spirit of a miko such as herself. After all, she was the most powerful priestess in the area, and with such powers she was selfish to afford herself the ability to love. The strength of her heart was better spent on the lives of many rather than the life of one.

It was decided then. Kikyo and her sister would set out to collect the gem and protect it from evil. That should provide her a noble life of service…away from a certain inu hanyou, and other youkai who ruled the west.

xXx

Back in Chronological Story Time

Sesshomaru stretched, shaking the crick from his neck. The sky was dark outside; he must have slept clear into the night, if indeed he had slept for less than twenty four hours. Stepping away from his bed, he padded over to the window, searching for the moon. No such luck. The lunar orb had been eaten away into a mere crescent. The nerve damage due to Ryuukotsusei's electricity must have been much more extreme than he had thought. Hopefully his mate had been smart enough to avoid the dragon while he was incapacitated.

Sesshomaru massaged the previously injured area of his arm, rotating the joint in a slow and shaky circle. No more pain emanated from his shoulder but he would still treat it gently, just to be sure. Damn it, after all of that healing he needed something to eat to get his strength back up. He was sure something would be small enough in the area for him to catch and kill without any fear of damage to himself.

The taiyoukai sighed. Why was it that no matter what he did, nothing ever went according to his plans? He swore that he lived in a giant bubble of conspiracy. Perhaps once he warmed Ryuukotsusei to the idea of Inuyasha as his mate, they could burst through it together.

All of the sudden, a weird image of Ryuukotsusei and Inuyasha together playing a game of shogi floated into his head. Sesshomaru couldn't even begin to count how many times he had lost to his sire in what he knew was the dragon's most favorite game. In his little fantasy Ryuukotsusei, of course, won the game. The great dragon then went on to rub Inuyasha's ears good naturedly, brushing the heel of his purple clawed hand in a mocking, triumphant motion; a gesture that the hanyou endured while stubbornly growling his distaste with the situation. His brother always had been a sore loser, Sesshomaru supposed.

Ah, perhaps that particular scene might never happen, but he did need to find a way that his sire and his mate could coexist peacefully within ranges under fifty feet of one another.

In the mean time…food. Sesshomaru settled his armor about his chest, and opened the door, which at the same time pushed back at him. He pushed a little bit harder. _God damn fucking door._

"Hey, do you want your dinner or not?" came a voice from behind the hard oak panel. Sesshomaru frowned. Who said he wanted room service with a smile?

"You know, I can do this myself. I'm fine now," Sesshomaru barked.

"I know, but I thought it would be a nice gesture on my part," Inuyasha huffed. "But then again, if you don't want your portion, I guess I could eat enough for the two of us."

The taiyoukai opened the door slowly and turned away from it. Unrolling the dining mats he kept behind a chair, he sat down. In fact, he was surprised that he even _had_ two mats. It wasn't like he ever had any guests, at least ones that he'd want in his personal chambers.

Inuyasha sat across from him, eyeing him curiously. Sesshomaru took a bite of his food, but he could still feel those eyes on his body even when he stared down at his plate on the floor. He felt slightly awkward and somehow violated by the staring.

"What do you want?" he growled.

Inuyasha smiled. "That's up to you."

_Ugh! Please say that was not an innuendo. Please. _Sesshomaru picked up a bone from his plate and threw it at his brother. Inuyasha seemed nonplussed by the chicken bone that came whirling through the air at him and simply caught it between two fingers, setting it down.

Inuyasha continued staring at his brother with curious eyes, while the other pretended not to notice him. As the food on the hanyou's plate grew colder, Sesshomaru became more and more annoyed.

"What!?"

Inuyasha could see the veins pulsing on the sides of the youkai's face. He might as well ask.

"Did you mean what you said?"

_How did I know he was going to ask about that? Perhaps if I ignore it, it shall go away. _"What did I say? For everything that happened, do not harass me in a hunt for trivial words."

_Trivial words, my ass. You know what you said and are now trying to cover it up. Tricky bastard. _Inuyasha picked up the bone Sesshomaru had launched at him earlier and flung it right back at him.

"I just want to know, and I don't need you to be all gushy and sappy about it, okay? Did you say that you loved me in order to keep that dragon out of complete blood lust or because you actually _do _love me," he asked quietly.

_I want to be close to him, and I don't want to ask his permission any more. _Inuyasha slid closer to Sesshomaru, sliding off the mat onto the floor to rest on his knees.

Sesshomaru glanced at his brother coolly, trying to hide the anxiety that built with every inch closed between them. He should be angry, or leery at the least, not anxious. _I can tell you saw through my words, but now that you know, what more do you want from me?_

Inuyasha raised a hand to his brother's face, stroking the stripes that framed his cheekbone gently. At the touch, Sesshomaru raised his eyes to meet his mate's gaze, his body going rigid at the same time. The hanyou placed his other hand upon the youkai's newly healed shoulder.

"Aniki, I have no idea how to express my gratitude to you. I never expected that one day I would owe you for my life. Will you let me show you in this way?" Inuyasha whispered into the other inu's pointed ear.

The warm, moist air and smooth voice pleased Sesshomaru; he could feel the rush of blood heating his body. These actions were not unpleasurable. However any pleasure he might have felt was dissipated, a phantom thought that had been lurking in his mind finally surfacing.

_I have the charisma and the passion to make love to another. But do I know how to let another make love to me?_

Sesshomaru's body loosened slightly under his mate's touch, but he still made no move of affection towards Inuyasha. _I don't know how to do this. I was never supposed to, but there's nothing I can do about it._

Inuyasha snaked his arms around the youkai's shoulders and pulled his brother to him so that their chests rested against one another. Tipping Sesshomaru's head towards his lips, Inuyasha dusted a light kiss on his crescent mooned forehead. "I love you, aniki. I always will," he breathed.

Inuyasha cradled the back of Sesshomaru's head in the palm of his hand. _I know you feel awkward, but you don't have to do anything. For once, just let me. _

Closing his eyes, the hanyou grasped his brother's lips between his own. The taste of his mate's mouth reminded him of spice and cinnamon, although it most definitely was not. The demon had not eaten these things in quite a long time. The taste was warm and had a bittersweet edge to it. Involuntarily, Inuyasha unleashed his tongue from behind the domain of his fangs, probing it deeper into Sesshomaru, trying to find the source of the unique flavor that defined his kiss.

With eyes half lidded, Inuyasha pulled out of the kiss.

While allowing Inuyasha to breach into his personal space, Sesshomaru did not, however, reciprocate any of his ministrations. Yet the hanyou could tell that his elder brother was not the least bit angry. No, this was a completely different form of unresponsiveness.

Inuyasha straddled his brother's kneeling thighs. "It's ok. You don't have to be something that you're not."

"That is something that you will never have to worry about, Inuyasha. Why would I change now?" Sesshomaru whispered, using his voice for the first time in a long while.

Inuyasha smiled. "I knew you wouldn't. I just wanted you to know that I don't expect it of you. Just let me love you."

_Otouto, don't you understand? I don't know how._

This time, as Inuyasha bent in to join with his brother's lips, Sesshomaru rested his hands on both sides of the hanyou's waist. When Inuyasha's tongue plunged deep into his mouth, he returned each parry. As his younger brother's fingers found the edge of his kimono and slipped it off to expose the bright skin of his shoulders, he clawed at the obi that held his brother's fire rat kimono together.

Inuyasha caressed the round shapes of the youkai's shoulder muscles, finally rolling his mate onto his back. The silver hair surrounded the older demon's head like a star burst, the weary glimmer of his half trusting eyes the bright centerpiece of this pale beauty.

Sesshomaru marveled at the strange coldness that fell upon his skin as each article of his clothing was removed. Perhaps it was the giver that felt more excitement than the one receiving it, as the wrapping papers were torn off of its true and naked form. Inuyasha licked his nipples which stood immediately at attention. The soft trace of claws, the sweet brush of hair, and the intimacy of skin lying flush against his skin was strangely exhilarating. Unbidden, he felt a sigh of pleasure escape his lips and his body arched into Inuyasha's hands, which were rubbing in circles on his upper torso.

The younger inu was flabbergasted. _He actually responded!_ Quickly, he tried to think of new ideas. _It's so strange that even as he lies on his back beneath me, he still holds such power over me._

The hanyou licked a trail of moisture from the top of Sesshomaru's hakama to the cleft between his collarbones. "I'm glad that you allow yourself to feel any kind of pleasure from me."

Sesshomaru folded his arms behind his head, so that he could look at his brother directly in the eyes. "Believe me, otouto, this does not come easily to me."

The youkai reached a hand up towards Inuyasha, but he let it fall to the ground; Inuyasha had already moved to lavish a different part of his brother's body, so Sesshomaru had run his hands through thin air. With his brother playing up and down his entire body, he had no idea what the hanyou was going to do to him next. He was always so used to taking and touching whatever he wished, but if he reached the wrong way when Inuyasha made a move elsewhere, say accidentally grazing his claws against the hanyou's cheek, or bonking heads if he propped himself on his elbows, they would get in one another's way.

In fact, he had never thought about the choreography involved in being beta. For one who had been so dominant his entire life, this was a very daunting task! There were so many unspoken rules that he took for granted!

A flash of warmth disrupted his brain as Inuyasha nipped hungrily at the lowest part of his abdomen that peeked out from his hakama. With a faint snarl, he began to fight with the garment, taking the waistband in his teeth and pulling it down with his clenched jaws.

Sesshomaru smiled. Inuyasha's cheeks were growing red and he was panting. He was working so hard in his quest to unclothe him. Finally, the half demon just ripped through the clothing with his claws, throwing the fabric off to the side.

_So eager just to please me. Perhaps I shall throw myself in front of lightning bolts more often._

The hanyou was smiling as he looked down at Sesshomaru's swollen cock below him. He licked his lips before smoothing them over the youkai's length, sliding down until the tip reached the flesh of his throat. Sesshomaru gasped, his torso rising upward just a tiny bit. A pair of strong hands grabbed his hips and pushed them down firmly to the ground while still languishing his tongue all over his captive prize.

Sesshomaru's eyes fluttered open in surprise at the impact of his butt with the ground and the strength behind the way he was held in that exact spot. What was he supposed to do now? He had allowed himself to show a little bit of the pleasure he felt.

_What do I do?_ he wondered. At last, a different question came to him. _If I were Inuyasha, what would I want my mate to do?_

Sesshomaru spread his legs a little wider, letting Inuyasha in for a little better access. The hanyou sensed the change in his brother's position, and now began massaging the soft skin that covered the crease of his groin and inner thigh with his left hand. The right firmly gripped Sesshomaru by the base of his shaft while he began to lap his tongue around the head, circling the crease with the tip of his tongue.

The long silver hair of the hanyou slunk from behind his shoulder to breeze against his brother's bare skin. Sesshomaru reached a hand down to run his fingers through the silver threads that pooled on the floor beside him. He followed the trail upward to the soft white ears, which he rubbed with his palms. Inuyasha gave a happy growl and twitched his ears appreciatively.

_Hmmm...I wonder if I can do this. _

Sesshomaru continued stroking his brother's hair, the tips of his claws stimulating the scalp below. Bit by bit, the youkai pushed Inuyasha's head down further, so that the top of his cock also hit the last few ridges on the roof of the hanyou's mouth.

_Interesting. I wonder if he even knows what I did._

_S_esshomaru chuckled inwardly as he tried new variations, seeing what he alone was smart enough to find. Inuyasha, still lathing his tongue over his lover's erection, lifted his head, and gazed directly into the youkai's eyes. Sesshomaru's shock as their stares met made him harden even further.

"Inuyasha," Sesshomaru moaned. The hanyou's hand had moved now to cup his balls and he ran the back side of a claw across the sensitive skin that existed closest to the back. Finally, he began to suck the taiyoukai harder and faster than before, pressing his knuckle upward against the hidden gland that lay only a few millimeters below the surface of the taut skin.

Sesshomaru arched his back and gently squeezed Inuyasha's shoulders in between his muscular legs. As he came, he opened his mouth to make a sound, but nothing sprang to his lips. There was no more breath to lend to his voice.

Inuyasha rested his head against his mate's inner thigh and traced the magenta stripes that crowned his hips. He nipped the creamy inside of Sesshomaru's leg before kissing it with velvety lips. He couldn't help but stare at how delicate and beautiful Sesshomaru looked as he fell from climax. His pale skin glistened with his sweat, and it flashed slightly with every restorative breath he took. A very slight flush covered his chest, neck and cheeks reminding Inuyasha of a china doll.

_He enjoyed it. He seriously, willingly, wholeheartedly enjoyed it. _The hanyou couldn't even begin to hide the grin that was plastered over his face.

Inuyasha felt his own neglected cock pulse at the memory of Sesshomaru's face as he came. _So strange. Why do I feel such arousal at his satisfaction?_

Sesshomaru was still floating from the high of his climax. He found himself reaching for the hanyou's hand. He wanted to pull him in close, to savor the last remnants of that passionate flash of fire. The youkai closed his eyes to ponder the event that had just happened.

Suddenly Sesshomaru's memory paged back to an earlier time. He had felt this way before, but when? The hands that held him steady, the mouth that searched every square inch of his skin. No. They could not be from that horrible night, when he was forced against his will. This feeling was not displeasing. It made him belong.

_Why did I enjoy this so much? This stands against every purpose of my existence. I will not lie like this forever, I do not have to. But I reaped a greater reward than I have any other time. Why do I feel such release in a situation so distasteful...so topsy turvy?_

The hanyou stared down at the resting youkai, admiring the flashes of color that adorned his eyelids. _He has no idea what he is doing to me right now. Perhaps if he liked that... _Inuyasha finally undid his hakama and fundoshi, his own erection now fully free. Eagerly, he licked his fingers and massaged the tight ring of muscle that was Sesshomaru's anus. Inserting his index finger, he slid his digit in and out, allowing each joint to hitch on the protesting band of flesh.

_Oh Kami! _Sesshomaru jolted straight up and backed straightaway into the wall, completely taken off guard. Reflexively, he raised his claws in front of his chest in a defensive posture. _What the hell is he trying to do?_

_Fuck! I am so stupid. I can't just expect him to change like that overnight. _Inuyasha cursed at himself. "Sesshomaru, I didn't mean to...I just-"

"You just what? Forgot that these past two weeks existed?" Getting over his shock, he let his hand fall to his side. _It's just a habit, Inuyasha. Just like it's a habit that I can't apologize to you._

Inuyasha crawled over to his mate again. "Sesshomaru, I'm sorry. I love you."

Sesshomaru's head roiled with unsaid thought. _See, he just did it so easily. You can, too._ The words clustered on his tongue but he just couldn't say it. _If you can't say them both, try for one._

"I'm-" Sesshomaru paused before continuing. "I'm sorry, too." The taiyoukai stared into the floor, glaring at the cracks in the wood with narrowed eyes. _Why was this always so hard?_

The hanyou put a tentative arm about his mate's shoulders. He turned his head towards the youkai and nuzzled into his brother's cheek. _Forgive me again._

"I will not try again, until you allow it," Inuyasha whispered.

"I know," Sesshomaru demurred. "There are some things that I should tell you first."

"What? I mean if you have any requests or anything, I would be more than happy to at least try." The hanyou was absolutely baffled as to what his brother was talking about. _What could it be?_

"No, it has nothing to do with that." The taiyoukai scowled. _Get your head out of the gutter, you pervert._

"Does it have something to do with what life is going to be like for us, with everybody finally home? I mean, I'll stay as far away from your dad-"

Sesshomaru interjected dryly. "Sire."

"As far away from your _Sire_ as possible," Inuyasha corrected himself. _I'm willing to put up with a little bit of hell until things get worked out. Don't worry about me, aniki._

"It doesn't have anything to do with that either."

"Well then what?"

_You can do this. You are a better man than your father._ "It's about that pup I used to have."

_Oh. I understand._ Inuyasha berated himself for not even thinking about the lost pup.

Sesshomaru laid out on the floor once more. Yes, his skin would entirely heal from his self surgery, and the entrance wound from the sword was almost completely invisible now, but Tetsusaiga was a sword forged with a power far older than he. He would bear its mark for a month before it fully faded from his body, even though it was a fine white line on a slightly paler stretch of skin.

"Do you see this scar?" Sesshomaru growled.

Inuyasha squinted. "Yeah, I think so. I mean, I didn't think you scarred."

"I don't."

"Well then, what is that?"

"It will go away in a month," he snipped. Sesshomaru bit down his rage. "That is the wound Tetsuseiga leaves when it pierces flesh."

The hanyou's eyes grew wide. "Tetsuseiga?! Who the hell stabbed you with Tetsuseiga? I mean-" Inuyasha panicked.

"Me."

"What?!"

"I did. I woke up pregnant, could not bear it, and killed it. In cold blood."

Inuyasha crossed his arms across his chest and stared off into space. _He said it was an accident... He said it was a fucking accident!_

"But how could you?"

Sesshomaru shrugged. "I suppose I could ask you the same question. And then, after we both examine why we did what we did, we can go ask Father."

The taiyoukai sighed._ I'm in pain, you're in pain. I am sure that my parents are in pain. We're all even now, aren't we?_

Inuyasha stood up on shaky feet. "Regardless of how I feel, I understand."

Sesshomaru glanced up at his brother. "You do?"

"We are from the same blood, you and I. Just because I understand does not mean that I forgive you." The hanyou gathered up his clothing that had piled up on the floor, and began to dress again. "Not yet, anyways."

"I do not expect you to," Sesshomaru stated plainly. After an awkward silence, he added "You are dismissed."

He pulled his mokomoko-sama around his form, giving him slight decency. Inuyasha felt his heart lurch as he viewed his brother's near perfect body, only now the scar stood out in the dip between his hips, marring the magical beauty he had seen only moments before.

Inuyasha returned to his brother's side, who gazed nonchalantly out his window into the inky sky. "Good night," he said. He wanted to look at his brother in the eyes one last time.

"Good night," Sesshomaru answered, not turning a fraction from the sill.

The hanyou leaned forward, giving his mate a chaste peck on the cheek before leaving him alone to contemplate the darkness of the night and his heart.

xXx

And the plot thickens... The next update will be sometime...I have half of 12 already written. It really depends on when Dembo has free time, and when I can write the other half. But do not despair...it is my holiday break...which means a lot more free time for me. Yay!

And for those of you who read other fandoms...I will shamelessly promote my Oriya/Hisoka fic that I am writing for the Yami no Matsuei portion of the site, with a little bit of help from SilenceOfTheHeart.

And I'm serious...friend me on livejournal. I can actually tell you guys what is going on so that I don't end up just annoying you if things just happen. And don't forget, if you like Topsy Turvy, please vote for it!


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